


And there you are (an ocean away)

by old_starlit



Category: Hamilton - Miranda
Genre: Alex is just confused, Alternate Universe - Fantasy, Alternate Universe - Merpeople, Fantasy, Fluff and Angst, John is saltier than the ocean he lives in, M/M, Mermaids, Not really a little mermaid au, Pining, Slow Burn, and its a lot gayer, it just has similar themes
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2016-10-12
Updated: 2017-05-19
Packaged: 2018-08-21 23:22:31
Rating: Teen And Up Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 21
Words: 53,702
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/8264239
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/old_starlit/pseuds/old_starlit
Summary: John never cared much for living in the ocean. There wasn't much to do, anyway, except swim in circles and hear his father drone on about humans. Land was always a distant dream, an unattainable wish.And then he meets Alexander Hamilton and his want to live ashore suddenly becomes a need.-AKA the mermaid AU that no one wrote and no one needed.





	1. Chapter 1

The ocean was quite a beautiful thing, if you thought about it.

Waters ranging from crystal-blue, shimmering glass to dark, rich pits of blackness. Glittering fluorescent creatures and resplendent fish darting through corals and coves, and the feeling of absolute calm, with the rhythmic waves lapping up against the rocks.

And then someone screamed, “Fuck!” and the illusion was shattered.

Fish scattered as John swam through, running a hand through his curly hair in an attempt to tame it, which was a lost cause, because underwater, things didn’t exactly work your way. 

“Fuck, fuck, fuck, fuck, _fuck,_ ” he chanted, berating himself for almost being seen. He just wanted one peek of the ship that was passing by, but a sailor and caught his eye and...well. He hoped his father wouldn't hear about this.

After a moment of whizzing through the ocean, he slowed, relaxing and taking a gulp of oxygen-rich water. _They couldn't see him down here._

He closed his eyes for a second, before opening them and registering where he was: Right next to a giant rock he and his sister would play on, which meant home in the corals was nearby and the ship was far away. John breathed a sigh of relief, comforted by knowing his bearings.

He swam upwards, head breaking out of the water and he leaned against the rock, taking a moment to catch his breath. His lungs burned slightly at the change from water to air, and the skin out of water already felt too dry.

“Well, look what we have here,” a voice said from behind him. He jumped, whirling back and coming face-to-face with three girls sitting on the rock who _definitely_ weren't there before.

“Who—what are you?” he gasped, once the initial shock had worn off.

“We’re nereids,” the eldest one said, looking slightly pleased at the effect they had on him. “Women of the sea, spirits of the ocean, nymphs of the blue, that sort of stuff.”

“Nereids…” John repeated, staring up at the remarkably human creatures. “I've never met them before.”

The middle one smiled at him, tucking a strand of dark hair behind her ear. “I'm Eliza. These are my sisters, Angelica and Margarita.”

“Peggy,” Margarita interjected.

“Peggy,” Eliza corrected herself. She held out her hand. “It's a pleasure to meet you.”

“The pleasure is all mine,” he responded, reaching up to take her hand. “My name is John.”

Angelica's eyes flickered down to the water, taking in his tail. “So, John,” she said curiously. “You're a merperson? I didn't know this ocean held any merpeople anymore.”

“We try to lay low,” John explained. “Humans nearly wiped us out and…well...” he shuddered, remembering the stories his father would tell him, and decided to boil it down to, “We don't want to risk that.”

“Well, _we're_ not going to hurt you,” Peggy said, lips quirked up in a smile. “So you can talk to us, yeah?”

“I...I guess that'd be okay,” John said doubtfully, _really_ hoping his father wouldn't hear about this. 

“Great!” Peggy said happily. “We haven't talked to anyone new since Theo, a water sprite, decided to move to land to be with her boyfriend Aaron.” She scoffed at the last part.

“How did she manage to go on land?” John asked interestedly.

“Water sprites can survive both on land and in the water,” Eliza told him and John deflated.

“Oh,” he said, trying not to sound too disappointed.

“Want to leave the ocean?” Angelica asked, some degree of sympathy in her voice.

John shrugged, but he couldn't hide the yearning in his voice. “I guess. Things seem to be so much _more_. Nothing really changes here, but out there...everything _moves_.”

“I know,” Eliza murmured. “We've gone ashore a few times and it's amazing. There's just so much and it's kind of overwhelming but also...exhilarating. We always have to leave at some time,” she added sadly. “Nereids can’t survive very long out of the sea.”

“But we belong here,” Angelica interrupted. “And there's beauty here as well.” She turned to John, eyes sharp and intelligent, and he had a feeling she saw more than John ever could've. 

“Don't even think of land,” she advised. “It's like a magnet—it pulls us in, but then it spits us back out. I'm telling you, John, it's not worth it.” She cast her gaze back towards the beach. “Like with Theodosia...no love is worth that amount of pain.”

John arched an eyebrow. “I can tell you're never satisfied.”

Angelica laughed unexpectedly. “That may be true,” she confessed. “But I've got my sisters, so who else do I need?”

“Agreed,” Peggy said with a nod, slipping off the rock and falling into the water next to John. “I'm not even interested in romance, to be honest.”

Eliza giggled. “Enough about this boring stuff,” she said, shaking her head. “Let's talk about you.” She turned her clear blue eyes towards John. “What's your life like?”

“Eh,” John said. “I suppose if I say it's shit, that'd be ungrateful.” He sighed. “There's really not much to say. I live with a small pod of merpeople. My dad's the king and I have three siblings. I spend my days talking to brain-dead fish and avoiding my dad who tries to set me up with girls. What does he say...I’m the heir to the throne?” He rolled his eyes. “Like we barely rule anything.”

“Your tail is really pretty!” Peggy commented when he was done speaking.

“Wow, Peggy,” John said dryly. “How very tactful of you.”

Peggy smiled charmingly and fluttered her eyelashes. “Why, thank you very much, John.”

“That's…” Angelica searched for the right words, before settling on, “shitty.”

John nodded. “Too true,” he muttered. Perking up, he offered, “How about I show you around my home? It'll be fun.”

“Are you sure your father will be okay with that?” Peggy asked.

“Not in the slightest.”

“Sounds good to me!” Peggy said brightly, ducking under the water, the rest following suit.

Eliza stretched out in the water. “Mmm, feels nice to be under again,” she breathed happily.

John nodded, feeling the salt prick his eyes, rejuvenating him. He breathed in water and felt his entire body wake up. He shook his head, curly hair falling in his face.

“Let's go!” Peggy chirped, spinning in a circle. “I don't know about you, but I'm _really_ looking forward to seeing John's complete failure of a life.”

John whacked her with his tail and she hit him back until Angelica intervened.

“Okay, enough of that,” she commanded. “Or I beach both of you.”

John shuddered at the thought, then gestured for the three to follow. “Well, let's go then.”

He smiled as they sped through the sea, relishing the feel of cool water against his skin. Land was amazing, true, but could anything beat _this_?

Peggy let out a whoop and did a flip, the other three following her and dissolving into laughter.

The sunlight dappled the water above them, painting patterns on their skin and making his tail shimmer whenever it caught the light. John held up his hand to stop the sisters as a school of fish swam past, a blur of silvers and blues.

When they had passed, John couldn't help but grin at the collective gasp that followed the reveal of his home. It was rather spectacular, he supposed.

Bright corals towered over their heads, fish darting through their arches. Kelp forests bloomed in a variety of greens, seashells sprinkled across the ocean floor. It was so full of life, blooming with color. It was gorgeous, but…

“Where is everyone?” Eliza asked, noticing the lack of merpeople.

John sighed, leading them through his home. “They’re either patrolling the surface for boats or hiding. Like I said, we lay low. We can’t risk people seeing us. Most rarely stray out of here or go in the open at all.”

“But not you,” Angelica said, looking at him with a raised eyebrows.

John shrugged as best as he could while swimming, a cheeky grin on his face. “What can I say? I like to defy my father. Anyways,” he added, swimming backwards so he could look at them. “I don’t think three nereids pose much of a threat.”

“True,” Peggy agreed. “We’re pretty peaceful.”

“Except that one time you accidentally caused a shipwreck,” Angelica muttered and Peggy turned to glare at her. “We are not talking about that!”

John stifled a laugh. “I’m not going to ask,” he said. Looking around, he paused. “We should probably stop here before we get to the more heavily populated parts. Merpeople don’t exactly welcome visitors.”

“Well,” Eliza said, placing a hand on his arm. “Thank you so much for showing this to us. It’s beautiful. In all my years of living here, I never had a chance to explore the coral reef.”

John smiled. “It was my pleasure. I’m glad to find someone new to talk to.”

“We’re always here if you need us or just want to hang out,” Angelica promised. “Part of us is always linked to the sea, so just call and we’ll be there.”

“Thanks,” John said warmly, quite shocked to find three friends and three friends who wanted to hang around. “I’ll keep in touch.”

Peggy gave him a quick hug. “You’d better,” she warned, then smiled at him. Waving, the there nereids swam away and John watched them go with a smile on his face. Then he turned around, set on sneaking back home, and came face to face with the king, or, more accurately, his father. And he did not look happy.

“Dad!” John gasped. “Were-were you watching the entire time?”

Henry nodded, expression stony and eyes cold. “What exactly,” he hissed. “Were you doing with those nymphs?”

“They’re just nereids,” he said hurriedly. He couldn’t help but pray that his father didn’t know about the sailor who had saw him earlier. “They’re harmless. They wouldn’t betray us!”

“Those harmless nereids,” Henry spat. “Are also the closest species with those genocidal humans. If one of them slips out how merpeople are still alive, we’ll be hunted again, and this time to death.” He glared down at John, who gulped. He always thought that maybe this time he’d stand up to his father finally, but he seemed to lose every ounce of his courage when Henry ever so looked at him.

“Dad, I—” John tried, but he was interrupted.

“I don’t think you understand what stakes we’re playing with here,” Henry said. “We could _die,_ Jack.”

“Like this is any better?” John challenged him. “Our people are unhappy, we have nothing to do and nowhere to go all day, we don’t even _know_ how the humans are now. When was the last time you’ve ever _seen_ land?”

Henry didn’t answer, but his eyes flashed in warning and John decided the best course of action was to shut his mouth. “John,” he said slowly, and John knew he was in trouble when he used his real name. “I’d suggest you stop arguing with me right now, or else…” He didn’t finish the thought and John knew that _or else_ could mean a variety of pretty bad things.

John lowered his eyes, nodding. It wouldn’t do him any good to fight back, which he had learned from experience. “Can I at least leave the coral reef?” he asked, somewhat meekly. “I won’t go far, I promise, and I won’t talk to anyone. I just want to go somewhere new.”

Henry hesitated for so long, John was worried he’d deny him, but then, to his surprise, he nodded. “Very well. Don’t go far and stay far from the surface,” he instructed. “I don’t want to lose my oldest son.”

John nodded quickly, unable to stop the smile spreading across his face. “Of course, thank you, Dad!” He debated hugging his father, then thought better of it, and ended up simply turning and swimming away.

Once out of his father’s sight, he exhaled, exhausted from the exchange. Arguments with his father had become more strenuous than anything lately, and he was wondering what the whole point of it was. He continued on his way, swimming aimlessly, occasionally mindlessly bumping into fish. He paused however, at the sound of singing. 

It was a female’s voice, rich and high, drifting through the sea. It was a gorgeous sound and, despite what his father’s warned against, he followed it. The singing led him to a shipwreck, half submerged. It was giant and crumbling, sea creatures already making it their home. The singing was coming from above water, however.

 _Don’t go near the surface,_ his father’s voice warned in his head. Naturally, he ignored it and swam upwards. He cautiously lifted his head out of the water and saw a beautiful girl with long, curly dark hair and rosy red lips, perched on the ship's mast, singing. She paused at the sight of him, lips parted in surprise.

“Hi,” John said, breaking the silence and waving a hand. “You have a lovely voice.”

“Oh,” the girl said, a faint smile on her face. “Thank you. My name’s Maria.”

“John,” John replied. He was breaking the rules he had just established with his father by talking to someone, above water no less, but he couldn’t bring himself to really care.

“The singing’s nothing special, though,” Maria said dismissively. “All sirens can sing like this.”

“You’re a siren?” John asked, somewhat warily. “Were you trying to, I don’t know, seduce a guy?” Maria frowned. “No,” she said. “I was singing. You make it sound like I live off of male affection,” she continued, disgust evident in her voice. “But a), I’m gay, and b), I have an actual life too.”

“Sorry,” John said quickly. “I didn’t mean to assume.”

Maria waved a hand. “It’s okay. It happens all the time. We’re not all sex-crazed, either,” she added. “Consent’s a thing we respect.”

“But I do use seduction as part of my job,” Maria admitted. “It makes things easier.”

“You’re job?” John questioned, and she nodded, eyes lighting up in a way which showed John she was very proud of it.

“I steal,” she said, and at the look on his face, she amended, “Not big things. Little trinkets, cheap items, unnecessary accessories. I then sell those human items to nereids, spirits, other sirens, etcetera. Even merpeople like you.”

“Merpeople?” John repeated. “But we’re not allowed contact with other species.”

Maria rolled her eyes. “Everything’s allowed if you’re not caught,” she said, and John was pretty sure that wasn’t how things worked, but he decided to let it slide.

“So,” he said, swimming closer. “What can you tell me about life ashore?”

Maria leaned forward, a crooked smile on her face. “Ready to have your mind blown?” John raised an eyebrow in challenge. “Let’s hear it.” And then she told him. And that was when John first realized how desperately he needed to set foot on land.

*

The shipyard was a noisy place, sailors bragging about the biggest catch they found, or how they defied the latest siren, or how they slain the largest sea serpent. It was full of bustling life, everyone hurrying to reach their ship before the crew left without them or rushing to the marketplace to sell their catch.

Alexander Hamilton watched all this with faintly amused eyes, leaning against his—no, _their_ —ship, _the Revolutionary_ , a smile on his face. Here, was his real home, the smell of sea salt in the air and the sound of the waves around him.

The ship was set to sail as soon as Captain George Washington entered. It wouldn’t be too long now, so he took the opportunity to take a break when he could,

“Alex!” Alex turned to see a man walk towards him, a broad smile on his face.

“Hercules,” Alex greeted, dipping his head. “Glad you could join us on this one.”

“Well,” Hercules gave a shrug. “My store doesn’t make a ton of money. I need this side job.” Hercules was an aspiring tailor, but to make money on the side, he sailed with Washington to track down creatures and slay sea monsters.

“Any news?” Alex asked him. He was a sucker for gossip, and Hercules seemed to know what was going on with just about everyone. _It was the clothing shop_ , Hercules would tell him. _Customers tell me things while I take their measurements_. 

“Actually, yes,” he said and Alex perked up. Hercules laughed at his eagerness. “I heard a...rather _interesting_ story from Seabury.”

“Seabury,” Alex spat in disgust. “My dog speaks more eloquently than him.”

“You don’t have a dog,” Hercules reminded him, then continued. “Anyway, he claimed that he saw a—” He paused, leaning forward and dropping his voice. “A _mermaid_.”

“A mermaid?” Alex said disbelievingly. “No way. Those things are extinct, or at least around here.”

“It could’ve been true,” Hercules argued. “No one ever confirmed that mermaids were wiped out in these waters. People haven’t just seen them.”

Alex gave him a _your point?_ look. “Which _obviously_ means there are no more of them.”

“Well, he described it pretty vividly,” Hercules said. “He couldn’t tell if it was male or female, but it had curly hair and a green tail. It disappeared as soon as it saw him.”

Alex scoffed. “As convincing that story is,” he said. “You shouldn’t believe anything that Seabury spews out of his mouth. He was just begging for attention like all the sailors do. I mean, did you hear what Lee said? He said that he killed a ten foot long serpent. Like, come on Lee!” Alex’s voice rose like it always did when he ranted. “ _Everyone_ knows that serpents are at _least_ fifteen feet long!”

Hercules had a bemused look on his face, like he always did when Alex talked too much. “Well,” he said. “I say we keep an eye out.”

“Whatever makes you sleep at night.” Alex rolled his eyes, but shot up straight when he saw someone appear out of the corner of his eyes.

“Here comes the captain,” he announced. “Let’s head on board.”

They set foot on the boat, everyone scurrying to their assigned positions. Alex took out his maps and compass, giving them a look over. He was the captain’s right-hand man, the navigator, he set the ship in the right direction and (hopefully) not into the mouth of a sea monster.

The ship began to move, sails billowing, waves lapping at its side. Alex could distantly hear the cheers of the children who would watch the boats set sail. He closed his eyes, feeling the sea breeze on his face, taking in the salty air.

 _Mermaids_ , he thought, facing the ocean. _Yeah, right_.


	2. Chapter 2

John was completely enthralled by Maria's words as she told stories of life ashore, weaving out a story of another world.

“Wow,” he breathed. “I _really_ want to go up there someday.”

Maria faltered. “You know you can't, right? It's hard enough for sirens to stray too far from the sea, but a merperson?” She shook her head. “You _can't_ survive. It just doesn't work. Merpeople belong underwater. It's just how it is.”

John cast his gaze down. “I...yeah. Okay.” He smiled at her. “Thank you so much for telling me all this. I’m hoping I’ll see you again sometime?”

Maria returned the smile. “Definitely,” she replied. “It’s hard to make friends out here.”

“Well, I have to go,” John said regretfully, thinking back to his father. “See you later!”

Maria waved. “Bye! Oh, and John?” She reached down and caught his arm before he could move away. He looked at her questioningly.

“ _Please_ don’t get caught up on land,” she said seriously. “It won’t end well. It never does.”

“I won’t,” John assured her, but his mind was screaming a thousand different things. “Don’t worry.”

Maria released him. “Then goodbye. Visit often. I’m always around here if you want to find me.” 

John smiled and nodded, before turning and diving back down into the water. He retraced the same path he took to the shipwreck and made his way back to the coral reef.

As soon as he entered, he found his sister swimming towards him. “Jack!” she called. “I’ve been looking for you!”

“Hey, Martha,” he said, swimming closer to her. “What’s up?”

Martha waved her hand for him to follow. “Dad’s been worrying about you,” she said. “You’ve been gone for a while.”

“I have?” John blinked. “It didn’t seem too long.”

Martha shot him a curious look. “What were you doing, anyway?”

John hesitated. “Um. You know. Swimming around, talking to turtles. The usual.”

Martha fixed him a glare. “I’m your sister, Jack. I know when you’re lying.” She frowned at him, and he knew he had to give her an explanation.

“Don’t tell Dad, okay? Or James or Mary,” he said first, looking around nervously.

“Promise,” Martha said with a nod. “It’ll be just between the two of us.” They were the closest out of all of their siblings, and John believed her.

“Okay,” John said. “I was talking with a siren.”

“A siren?” Martha’s eyes widened. “She didn’t lure you into a trap, did you? Seduce you or something?”

“No,” John said, deciding now was not the time to say how very gay the two of them were. “We just talked. She told me about land.” He looked at her carefully for her reaction.

“Land?” Martha asked noncommittally. “Never really saw the appeal. What’s so great about it, anyway?”

John choked. “What’s so great about it? There’s so much out there. So much that we merpeople can’t even comprehend! How are you not even a little bit curious about that?”

“Because that _curiosity,_ ” Martha shot back, “is what almost killed us. And besides,” she continued. “Haven't you heard the legend about merpeople who fell in love with humans and became human, only to be rejected or to forever miss the sea or to _die_ just to return home?” She shook her head. “It's just not worth it, Jacky. Better to not think about land at all.”

“But those merpeople were a bunch of lovesick fools who were chasing after some guy,” John pointed out. “ _I_ want to go on land for exploration. And I'd be smart about it too.”

Martha arched an eyebrow. “And there were merpeople who did that too and died even more painfully.” She shrugged. “Just can't win.”

John opened his mouth, realized she was right, and closed it again. He sighed. “Since when were you _smarter_ than me?” he asked.

“Since, like, always,” Martha replied.

“Fair enough,” John muttered. He looked her over and cracked a smile. “We haven't been able to talk together. Alone. I feel you've aged a lot.”

“Well, I had to grow up because apparently I was the only one who bothered to take care of James and Mary,” Martha said bitterly.

At that, John bit his lip and looked downwards, not trusting himself to speak. Martha winced.

“I'm sorry. That was uncalled for. I know Dad keeps you busy and…” She sighed. “It's just so hard keeping track of our two siblings and then there's you and Dad always distant because of ‘kingdom business’ and then there's the kingdom in _general_ , which is practically falling apart and _fuck_ , I just don't know how to help, Jack!” she said helplessly, throwing her hands in the air.

John wrapped an arm around her. “I'm sorry too,” he said softly. “I've been a shit brother, exploring instead of spending time with my siblings. And it'll be okay. Merpeople are strong. We can get through anything.”

Martha took a breath of water, exhaling slowly. “Yeah. We will.” She smiled shakily at him. “Just a reminder,” Martha said suddenly. “In a few days, Dad wants the whole family in the throne room for a family meeting or something. I think he wants to talk to you about how you’re the crown prince.”

John nodded. “I'll try to remember that,” he said. “Though I'd really rather not.”

Martha nodded in sympathy and agreement, before saying, “So what are you going to do now? Hang out with your new siren friend?” 

John smiled, taking her hand. “Actually,” he said. “I was thinking about helping you watch over James and Mary, if that's okay.”

Martha beamed at him, leading him deeper through the corals. “I think that's more than okay.”

*

A few days later, John was missing his new friends, so he slipped past his father and out the coral reef, swimming until he was far enough from home.

He swam in a circle for a moment, unsure what to do, before calling out tentatively, “Angelica? Eliza? Peggy?” He waited, feeling extremely stupid, before giving up and turning to head back.

Then he stopped because in front of him, the water was twisting and bending, forming the shapes of women, and he watched as they solidified and the nereid sisters took place in front of him.

Eliza waved cheerily at him. “Hey, John!” she chirped. “It's been too long!”

Angelica smirked at his slackjawed-ness. “Pretty cool, right? We can basically teleport anywhere in the ocean.”

Peggy spun in a circle, ending up with her arm slung lazily around John. “What's up, John? Couldn't get enough of us?”

John rolled his eyes, pushing her playfully away from him. “I _guess_ you can say I _maybe_ missed you. A little.”

Angelica grinned. “Well, we missed you too,” she replied.”What do you want to do?”

John thought for a moment. “I'm up for exploring the ocean, doing whatever.”

“Doing whatever sounds pretty good,” Eliza said. “Let’s go.”

They swam through the ocean, Angelica leading the way, pointing out sea creatures and plants. John spotted a giant sea serpent make its way past them passively, not bothering them except for a look over with its gleaming green eyes. He saw a herd of hippocampi off in the distance and a few selkies swimming downwards into the depths of the waters.

Suddenly, Angelica thrust out her hand. “Stop!” she called, not moving, eyes fixed upwards. John slowly followed her gaze and saw what she was staring at—a ship.

It was no more than a looming black shadow above then, disrupting the water around it, causing sea creatures to flee. He didn’t move, in fear of it somehow spotting him.

When it passed, Eliza let out a sigh of relief. “That was terrifying.”

“As long as they don’t see John,” Peggy said. “We’re good.”

John nodded, not saying a word as he got over the shock of what happened. Eliza placed a hand on him. “All good?”

“All good,” John replied, taking a breath in. The nereids were used to ships, straying near the surface much more often, but he was not, and just the mere shadow of a ship terrified him.

They continued on their way until Angelica slowed down and peered up at the surface of the water once more.

“Hey,” she said. “It’s starting to rain.”

John looked up as well, watching as raindrops touched the glassy sea surface, sending ripples out. The rain began to beat down harder, sending freshwater droplets down into the salty water.

“Looks like there’s a storm coming,” John noted. “Do you think it’s safe enough to continue?”

“I...I don’t think so,” Eliza said hesitantly. She swam up and cautiously poked her head out of the water. “The waves are starting to rise.” She shivered. “I say we head back.”

“But _Eliza_ ,” Peggy protested. “It’s just a little storm!”

“The last thing we need is to crash up on a rock or be swept ashore,” Angelica said grimly. “And we especially can’t risk John being seen. Let’s go back to the coral reef.”

John nodded in agreement, looking nervously upward at the surface. He couldn’t help but think that this storm wouldn’t bring any good.

*

Alex chewed his lip nervously, looking onwards towards the sky. The sky was darkening in a way he didn't like and the clouds were thickening.

“Sir?” he called. “I don't like the look of this sky at the moment.”

Washington looked at him. “Do you think it's going to rain?” he asked.

“It looks like a storm could start sometime soon,” he replied. “Think we should turn back?”

Washington thought for a moment. The day had gone smoothly, save for a run-in with a few wraiths. It would be a shame to lose everything to a storm. “Turn the boat around,” he ordered the crew. “If we want to get to shore by sundown, we should leave now.” He nodded at Alex. “Thank you for the warning, son.”

Alex bit back the retort threatening to leave his mouth at the nickname, and gave a short nod instead.

A few hours later, Alex was beginning to seriously worry. The waves were crashing against the side of the boat and the sky a dark gray. Raindrops were pelting down on him and he shivered. Even Washington was looking uneasy. The air changed and Alex breathed in, smelling one thing.

The smell of a storm. The smell of ozone, of lightning, of fresh rain, of swirling waters, of harsh winds. This was a storm, all right, and a big one at that.

“It's a hurricane!” Hercules called out, from somewhere to his right.

Alex's eyes widened, gripping the side of the ship. _A hurricane. No no no no no it couldn't be but it is but what if_

He snapped out of his daze as the ship lurched to the side, rocking back and forth. Alex peered over the side to see dark, churning waves that firmly resembled his current mental state.

His breathing was coming in short spurts now, rapid and small, not nearly taking in enough air. He was cold in the chilly air, but his palms were sweating.

“Alex!” And suddenly Hercules was there next to him. “Are you okay?”

“Y-yeah,” Alex choked out, squeezing his eyes shut.

“Are you sure? Because you don't look so— _holy fuck Alex watch out!_ ”

Alex's eyes snapped open and he whipped his head around to see a giant, straggly rock jutting towards the ship, the crashing of the waves almost drowning out the screams of the other sailors.

Alex shut his eyes again as the ship crashed, everything seeming to fall to the side.

The cold shocked him and he opened his eyes only to be engulfed in water, and he couldn't breathe and couldn't move and he could only see a bright green tail before he shut down.

*

They were halfway down before Eliza stopped. “Wait,” she said suddenly, holding up a hand. “Can we go up on the surface really quickly? Just trust me.”

Angelica pursed her lips, before nodding. “Okay. Really quickly.”

They swam up to the surface, breaking out of the water. The storm had gotten much worse, and it was hard to swim in the waves. If he weren't built for life in the sea, he would've been swept away.

“There,” Peggy gasped, pointing over to a cluster a rocks. John watched as a ship was veering towards it.

“We have to help,” Eliza said immediately.

“What? Humans are dangerous!” John protested.

“John, it is literally a nereid's job to help ships and sailors,” Angelica said. “We _have_ to go. You stay back.”

“I'm coming with you,” John argued.

“You can't be seen!” Eliza said. 

John set his jaw. “I'm coming with you. I promise I'll leave if you have everything under control.”

Peggy nodded her head impatiently. “Yes, whatever, fine! We're running out of time!”

By the time they had reached the boat, it crashed, hull splintering, sailors screaming and cursing.

“They're loading onto lifeboats,” Angelica said, yelling over the wind. “Eliza, Peggy, split up and help them have safe passage. John, _stay here_.”

The two sisters nodded, and they left before John could protest. He was left to watch helplessly as the ship broke, and prayed that everyone survived. Then a figure caught his eye.

He was struggling in the water, before the fight drained out of him and he began to sink.

“Fuck,” John muttered, looking up to the heavens, thinking _why me?_ before swimming towards the man.

He caught him, lugging him upwards to the surface. “I've got to save you now, huh?” he said to him. The man, being unconscious, was unresponsive. “So much for not getting involved.”

John swam towards land, carrying the man, who was surprisingly light. That's not to say he was _easy_ to carry, quite the opposite really, John struggling to keep him above water.

The guy became conscious halfway through, kicking and flailing, before swallowing a mouthful of water and passing out again.

 _Humans are so weak,_ John thought.

He managed to bring the sailor over to some flat rocks, ones not too close to where the boat crashed. John, with some effort, dumped him onto the rocks and waited for him to wake up.

He really should've left, but something drew him in, whether it be curiosity or plain stupidity. It wasn't until another few minutes when he finally woke up.

The man's eyes flew open and he coughed out water, before sweeping his dark hair out of his equally dark eyes. John felt his cheeks heat up at the sight of him, which was dumb, because even though the storm had died down, it was still freezing (and also because choking up water was _not_ attractive). The man took a shuddering breath, before taking in his surroundings. His eyes landed on John and he scrambled backwards.

“ _What the fuck?_ "

*

Alex woke up on a slick black rock, sea spray splashing in his face, and he coughed, spitting out water. Once he had calmed down he looked around, taking in where he was.

He appeared to be sitting on a cluster of rocks, close to the shore, but too far to swim safely to sea. The storm had stopped for the most part, rain now gentle and waves slow.

Then he caught sight of someone—no, _something_ — staring at him from the water.

“What the fuck?” he yelled, scrabbling on the wet rock to try and move away from it.

It was human, but...not. It had pointed ears and bright green eyes that were closer to a cat than a person. It offered him what Alex hoped was a smile, revealing slight fangs. On a more humanoid level, it had golden-brown skin, dotted with freckles all over its face, arms, and chest, and curly brown hair.

It was also insanely beautiful, but that was besides the point.

Alex's eyes snagged on its tail, adorned with shimmering, iridescent, green scales. Watching it wave back and forth in the water was almost mesmerizing.

“Wait, you're a mermaid?” Alex asked, scrambling down on the rock to get a closer look.

“No shit,” the mermaid (merman?) replied, rolling his eyes. “And actually, we prefer mer _person_.”

“Um,” Alex said, continuing to gape at the creature. “I thought you were all wiped out!”

“Oops,” the merperson said. “You weren't supposed to see me. My dad's going to kill me.”

Then, unexpectedly, he grinned, shaking his head. “Where are my manners? I'm John. Please don't tell anyone about our existence so we aren't hunted down again. And also, if you do, I will personally find you, kill you, and hand-feed your remains to a giant squid.”

Alex continued to stare at the merperson, no, _John,_ and he frowned.

“This is your cue to introduce yourself,” John said. “It's only polite.”

“Uhh…” Alex stammered. “Alexander Hamilton,” he managed, and goddamnit, he really hoped he wasn't falling in love with a mermaid.

“Alexander?” John said, rolling the name over on his tongue, and Alex knew he was screwed because he actually _liked_ how his full name sounded when John said it.

“Call me Alex,” Alex said, regaining control of his tongue. _That's it. Real words_.

“So,” he started conversationally. “How many are you left? Where do you live? What do you do?”

John looked at him, eyebrow raised. “I can't give all my secrets away. But I _can_ tell you that I spend my days avoiding my dad. He's the king.” He broke off, as if unsure if he said too much.

Alex leaned down closer towards John. “Dads, huh?” he said. “They're difficult. I know from experience.”

John looked at him curiously, his bright green eyes glowed oddly in the half-dark light. He leaned forward up out of the water in an effort to bring himself closer to Alex, and Alex was seriously starting to wish that merpeople wore clothing because he was _seriously_ distracting.

“What do you mean by that?” John asked, sarcasm gone from his voice. 

Alex shrugged. “My dad left when I was ten,” he explained, unable to hide the bitterness from his voice. “Never came back.”

“Oh,” John said quietly. “I’m sorry about that.”

Alex shrugged again. “It’s okay. It happens.” John nodded, and there was a moment silence, in which Alex thought, _holy shit I’m bonding with a mermaid._

“So,” he said, settling his chin on the palm of his hand. “What’s it like underwater?” He might as well spring up a conversation. He’d be here for a while.

“I could ask you the same thing,” John replied. “What’s it like above land?”

Alex quirked an eyebrow. “How about we go back and forth?” he suggested. “You tell me one thing and I tell you another. You first.”

John nodded and thought for a moment. “Well,” he said slowly. “I live in the corals, so I like to watch the fish around them. It’s oddly fun and they’re all so beautiful to look at.”

“Can you talk to them?” Alex asked interestedly.

“No. What gave you that ridiculous idea?” John responded. “We don't have weird telepathy power or something. And, besides, fish would be _really_ boring to talk to.”

“Why—” Alex started, but John cut him off.

“It’s your turn,” he reminded him. “Tell me something.”

“Let’s see,” Alex murmured. “I like the colors of the leaves on the trees. They change every season from green to orange to brown to green again.”

“What are trees?” John said, confused.

“Oh, um,” Alex said. He pointed over to shore, where the tips of trees could be seen. “You see those green things? Those are trees. They’re plants and they grow very tall.”

“Wow,” John breathed. “That sounds so cool.” His gaze was distant.

“Your turn,” Alex prompted him, and John turned his gaze to him. 

“When night falls, I like going to the surface of the water and watch the stars,” John said. He looked up at the stars that were over their heads now. “They’re like little pricks of light all over the sky. They reflect over the sea surface and make everything just seem so much more, you know?”

“John,” Alex said suddenly, and John looked at him. “You know what’s nice?”

“What?” John asked.

“We can see the stars from here too,” Alex said, locking eyes with him. _We’re not that different._

The corners of his lips curved upwards and John smiled at him, soft and gentle, and that made nearly drowning worth everything.

“Alex,” John began, but broke off at the sight of a boat coming towards them.

“That’s my crew,” Alex said, relieved, just able to make out Hercules scanning the seas. “They must be looking for me.” He turned to John, whose expression was terrified.

“Shit,” John said, backing away from Alex further into the water. “I’m such an idiot. _Fuck_.” He looked at Alex once, face becoming cold. “ This was a mistake,” he said. “Don’t tell anyone about me. Utter one word to your friends, and you’ll find that the entire ocean will seek your revenge.” His eyes glinted, and they were no longer soft, but hard and unforgiving. “Don’t look for me again.”

“John…” Alex said, reaching out, but John turned and ducked under the water, swimming away from him, going deeper and deeper into the depths of the sea.

“Wait!” Alex called out, his voice breaking, but John had already disappeared, invisible in the dark waters. He sighed, hanging his head, feeling completely broken over a stranger he’d just met, and watched the boat near closer to him instead.

He didn’t see bright green eyes emerge from the water once more to steal one last glance before ducking back down.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Yay! Alex is here! I'm thinking of updating this every Friday, so I have a week to write a new chapter.
> 
> EDIT: ALSO HAMILTON'S AMERICA WAS AMAZING AAAAA


	3. Chapter 3

John swam deeper through the depths of the ocean, a stream of swears running out of his mouth. A few nereids looked at him oddly, but he had more important matters on his mind.

“You idiot,” he muttered. “You could've been caught. What were you thinking?”

And yet…

The image of Alex's eyes were burned into his mind, there whenever he closed his eyes. Those dark, deep eyes, more gorgeous than anything John had ever seen. He thought about their easy way of talking, the way the corners of Alex's mouth would twitch upwards whenever he was amused, how he reached out to him so understandingly.

“Shit,” John breathed. He wasn't exactly a stranger to love and this was definitely a crush if he knew one.

A crush.

Yes, that was it. He wasn't in love, or hopelessly bewitched, or anything like that. He just had a crush on some guy, because he was probably the most attractive man he came into contact with.

“Ughhh,” John groaned, burying his face in his hands. _Why_ did Alexander have to be so goddamn attractive? This was his luck. This was really _just_ his luck.

He sighed, rubbing his eyes. He needed an outlet, someplace to escape to. Flipping through his index of friends, he landed on Maria, who probably had the most experience about land.

And also because he was dying to see her again.

John hesitated for a moment, wondering if he should go to the corals first and check up on his family, but decided against it. He was tired of the merpeople’s no-land mindset and he wasn’t quite sure if his current emotional state could handle another argument with his father.

While swimming towards the sunken ship Maria lived in, John ran into the nereid sisters, all three idly watching an cuttlefish switch back and forth between colors.

“Oh, hey, John!” Eliza said, noticing him and smiling. The fish swam away at his arrival, but Eliza didn't seem to care, instead asking, “What’s up?”

John shrugged, plastering a smile on his face. “Not much. I was going to go see Maria. She's a siren.”

“A siren?” Peggy asked excitedly. “I always wanted to meet one. Can we come?”

“I don’t see why not,” John replied. “Maria probably won’t mind.” He beckoned them with one hand, leading them towards the sunken ship.

“John,” Angelica started, breaking the silence. “We couldn’t find you after the ship crashed. Did you get out all right? We were worried.”

“I was fine,” John lied easily. “I just got scared and worried about my father and left.” He laughed a laugh he didn’t feel. “It didn’t seem like you needed me, anyway.”

“We did take care of the problem!” Eliza said proudly. “Almost all the crew made it. Except for one.” She looked a bit unsettled at that, but quickly regaining her cheerful composure. “But they're sending a search party to look for him! I'm sure he's fine.”

“Uh-huh,” John said, who was 99% sure that the missing man was Alex. “I’m sure he’s fine.”

“Ooh, what’s that?” Peggy said, swimming over to the sunken ship that was coming up to view. John breathed a sigh of relief at the topic change, and moved to swim next to her.

“This is the sunken ship where Maria lives,” he told her. “She kinda hangs out here and sells her goods.”

Angelica raised her eyebrow. “Goods?”

“Maria sells human objects to sea beings,” John explained. “It’s cool. She’ll show you.” He pointed upwards. “She usually hangs up here.”

He swam to the surface of the water, nereids following close behind and broke out of the water, flinching slightly at the shock of cold air he was met with. It was daybreak, the sun just coming out over the horizon. If John squinted, he could see a human town lit up by the sunlight, and couldn’t help but wonder if Alex was there and if Alex was maybe thinking of him and what he was doing and...He shook himself. _You’re not some lovesick mermaid,_ he told himself. _Get a hold of yourself_. Focusing on the partially submerged ship, he looked around for the siren. A quick glance over told him Maria was nowhere in sight.

“Maria?” John called out tentatively. “Are you there? It's John.”

Maria emerged from the ship, grinning. “John! It’s been too long!” She walked over and sat on the ship’s mast, peering down at him, eyes widening at the sight of the nereids. “And who are your friends?” She shot them a wink.

Angelica and Eliza’s mouths hung open, staring at Maria, who simply smiled.

Peggy looked at her cryptically. “Are you pulling some seduction shit right now?” 

Maria frowned. “Why aren’t you, like, drowning by my feet?”

Peggy raised an eyebrow. “Is that what people do now?” she asked, unimpressed. “If so, I didn’t get the memo.”

Maria rolled her eyes, shaking her head and laughing, and Eliza and Angelica seemed to snap out of their reverie, looking slightly confused.

“Why the fuck is she so attractive, John?” Angelica hissed.

“She’s a siren,” he whispered back. “She’s supposed to be.”

“It’s not fair,” Eliza muttered, eyes raking Maria’s body. Peggy groaned.

Maria grinned, having obviously caught all that, and turned to John. “What’s up?” she asked. “I take it you didn’t just come here so I could seduce your friends.”

John laughed. “No, I didn’t. I was actually wondering what you sell. I’ve never seen much of human accesories.”

Maria clapped her hands. “Of course!” She slipped her hands into her pockets and withdrew an array of objects. “Honestly, I have so much junk lying around here.” She held up three ring-thingies and shook them, making a jangly noise. “Bracelets! Humans wear these to look good.”

John frowned. “That seems so impractical,” he commented.

“Well, I think they're beautiful,” Eliza chimed in. “I’ve always loved the idea of little decorations all over your body.”

Maria beamed, holding out three bracelets for the nereids to take. “Here. Free of charge.” She smiled charmingly. “For first-time customers.”

As the nereids took the bracelets, John looked up at Maria. “What, nothing for me?” he joked. “I’m hurt, Maria.”

Maria laughed. “I don’t want to give you any ideas of going up there,” she said affectionately. She pointed down to the water. “You belong down there.” 

“Um,” John said, looking towards the three sisters. “Can I talk to you. Alone?”

Maria pursed her lips, sensing a serious topic. “Okay.” She turned to the nereids and gestured to her expanse of accessories. “You three can check this stuff out if you want. I need to talk to John.”

She turned to John and focused her attention on him. “What’s up?”

“Well,” John averted his eyes. “There was this...ship and it was caught in a storm. One of the sailors almost didn’t make it if I hadn’t...if I hadn’t saved him.”

“John, you didn’t—” Maria started, but John talked over her.

“So I saved him and set him on a rock and started to talk to him. And he was actually nice! And I don’t know what to do now,” he confessed, wringing his hands.

Maria looked at him worriedly. “That’s not good, John. Do you think he’ll tell others?”

“Honestly, no,” John replied. “He seemed genuine.”

“Then I think you’re safe,” Maria answered. “Humans _can_ have morals, you know. As long as you don’t talk to him again. I mean,” She laughed. “At least you didn’t fall in _love_ with him.”

John winced and Maria blinked.

“You _didn’t_ fall in love with him, _right_ , John?” she asked carefully and John took a breath.

“I don’t know!” he burst out. “I hardly know him but he was just so...understanding. And different. And really fucking attractive. I just don’t know.”

Maria reached downwards to lay a comforting hand on his shoulder. “John. Listen to me. A crush is not the end of the world. It’s going to be painful, sure, but _don’t look for him_. It’s not worth it. Promise you won’t look for him, John.”

John hesitated.

“ _Promise_ me, John,” Maria said again, eyes oddly bright. “I can’t lose another friend.” 

John looked at her and melted. “Okay,” he relented. “I won’t. You’re not going to lose me. I can promise you that.”

Maria exhaled, obviously relieved. “Okay,” she said. “I trust you.”

John nodded, reaching for her hand on his shoulder and squeezing it. “Don’t worry.”

“With humans?” Maria rolled her eyes. “It’s all I _do_.”

“I’ve got to go see my dad,” John said, looking up at the sky and seeing it was midday. “Family meeting or something.”

“See you,” Maria smiled, and John waved a hand at the nereids, who waved back, gauging from his reaction why he had to go. “I’ve got three lovely ladies to keep company.”

John rolled his eyes and waved at her once more, before disappearing under the water.

*

John would love to say that the meeting was interesting, that he agreed with all his father’s points, and that he was awake for the whole thing.

Needless to say, he couldn’t.

Martha prodded him awake. “John,” she hissed. “Wake up! Dad’s talking about you.”

John jolted up, tail nearly whacking Mary, just as his father said, “Now, John. We need to talk about you being the crown prince.”

John gave Martha an _oh my god_ look, which Martha not-so-subtly returned. 

Henry cleared his throat, eyeing his children, before continuing, “You are aware of your responsibilities as prince, I’m sure—” he said, to which John rolled his eyes. “—And I want you to know that _everything_ you do is for the kingdom and for the good of the merpeople.”

Now John wasn’t selfish, nor did he not care for his people. But the idea of spending the rest of his life dedicated to a kingdom and a too-old throne was _not_ something he looked forward to. “Why not ask Martha?” he muttered. “She’s twenty times more responsible than I am and cares a lot more for our kingdom.”

That was true. Martha practically took it on herself to take care of the castle, to personally check in on the other merpeople. She was incredibly selfless and if anyone deserved the throne, she did.

Henry didn’t bother to look at Martha. “You’re the eldest son, John,” he snapped. “The throne lies to you.”

“That’s sexist,” Martha muttered, looking crushed.

Henry ignored her. “You need to buckled down on your duties, John,” he said sternly, to which John rolled his eyes again. “And we also need an heir to the throne.” He looked pointedly at John, who maturely gagged.

“If you’re trying to set me up, Dad,” he hissed. “It’s not going to work. I’m not going to love her.” 

“It doesn’t matter about _love_ ,” Henry said exasperatedly. “It’s about the _kingdom_. You’re not marrying for feelings.”

“Did you love Mom?” Mary asked, and John, Martha, and James all automatically froze. That was the problem with Mary. She was twelve and very smart, but also brutally honest and had seemingly no filter. 

Henry had frozen as well and looked away, a flash of pain on his face, and John knew that _yes_ , he did love Mom, and her death had hurt everyone.

“I did,” he said quietly. “But we’re not talking about her right now. This is John’s life we’re talking about.”

John sighed as the conversation steered back to his future life. “Fine. Whatever. I don’t give a fuck about what happens to me anymore. Anything else I need to know?”

Henry gave a nod. “I don’t want you to leave the corals.”

John choked. “I’m stuck here? Forever? _No_.”

“You’re valuable now,” Henry responded, as if he were some fancy object instead of a person. “We can’t risk anything happening to you.”

“Dump all the kingdom responsibilities of me, marry me off to some random girl, do _whatever_ you want, but _please_ , Dad, let me explore other parts of the ocean,” he begged. “I am so tired of _everything_ here. Please. I—I can't be happy just _here_.”

Henry didn’t move. “Your happiness,” he hissed. “Doesn't matter. This is for the kingdom.”

John threw his hands up. “I don't _care_ about the kingdom! Not like you or Martha does. I want to _explore_. Find out about the rest of the ocean, of other creatures, of _land_ —”

“No,” Henry snapped and John sighed in defeat, glaring at his father.

“Fine then,” he spat. “Say whatever you want. I'm leaving.” 

“John,” Martha started as John swam away, moving to follow him, but Henry stopped her.

“He'll be back,” he said. “He has nowhere to go anyway.”

John gritted his teeth as he left. He had somewhere to go, all right.

The surface.

*

Alex would love to say that sorting papers was interesting, that he was paying attention to Hercules one hundred percent, and that he wasn’t thinking about a certain merperson.

Needless to say, he couldn’t.

Sighing, he wrote down a few notes on a sea serpent they had spotted. The whole point of the of the _Revolutionary_ —sorry, now that that ship was wrecked, the _Sons of Liberty_ —was to explore uncharted areas and record sea creatures that lived there for the king. The actual sailing part was fun, but paperwork? As much as Alex loved writing, this was just _boring_.

“Hercules?” he asked absentmindedly.

Hercules broke off from some story he was telling. Alex hadn’t paid attention. “Yeah?” he asked, confused.

“So, um, about what Seabury said…” Alex continued hesitantly.

“About the mermaid?”

“Merperson,” Alex corrected him. “Mermaid is a gender-based derogatory term.”

Hercules rolled his eyes. “Whatever. So what about the merperson Seabury saw?”

Alex placed another paper on a teetering stack. “Do you think what he said was true? That he really saw a merperson?”

Hercules smiled. “Are you starting to believe _Seabury_ now?” he teased him. “What’s this?”

Alex stabbed his quill through the paper. “I don’t believe a word Seabury says,” he argued. “I’m just wondering if he might have a point this time. Anyway, um,” He paused, wondering how to word his question. “How did the merperson look?”

Hercules thought for a moment. “I think he said that that it had curly hair, right? And a green tail.”

Alex set down the quill. Curly hair and a green tail. _John_. “Um, Hercules,” he started again. “Do you think merpeople are _truly_ wiped out? Like, do you think—”

“Alex,” Hercules cut him off. “I am by no means an expert on this stuff. Ask Washington.”

Alex stood up, knocking over a stack of papers. “Good idea! I’ll go talk to Washington.”

“Wait, no, Alex you can’t just leave and—” Hercules gave up, sighing. “Fine. Just go. But you still have to finish these papers.”

“Yeah, yeah,” Alex said absentmindedly, brushing him off. He had more important issues, anyway.

*

Washington lived some time away from Alex’s home. He wasn’t _too_ far out (like that allegedly crazy fisherman who lived all the way down the beach) but it was still far and by the time he reached Washington’s house, his legs were aching.

Washington’s house was small and modest, atop a hill, facing outwards towards the sea. A small garden was next to it, where he could see Washington’s wife, Martha tending to it, watching as she tended to blooming flowers and winding vines. Martha had a gift for gardening.

She was a selkie, caught by a young George Washington at the beginning of his job as a sailor. Unbeknownst to what the fur coat was, he brought it into his home and with the coat, brought Martha. It was rumored selkies were desperate to go back to the ocean, but Martha was so in love with her husband and so in love with everything ashore that it seemed alien to Alex for her to ever leave.

“Alex!” She smiled at him, looking up from her plants. “What brings you here?”

“Hello, Ms. Martha,” he greeted her. “I just had a few questions for Mr. Washington.”

“He’s inside,” she informed him. “It’s lovely to see you again.”

“You too,” Alex replied, smiling. Martha always had the knack to make him smile. 

He walked up to the door and opened it carefully, stepping foot inside the house, wood creaking beneath his feet. A light was on in the study room, so he headed there, poking his head in to see Washington poring over maps at his desk.

“Sir?” he asked hesitantly. 

Washington looked up from his maps, turning around in his chair. “Hamilton?” he said with a frown. “What are you doing here?”

Alex nervously rocked back and forth on his heels. Washington had always somewhat intimidated him, no matter what he led people to believe. “I had a few questions I was hoping you could answer.”

“Of course, Alexander,” Washington said easily, gesturing to an empty chair. “I’m always happy to help.”

Alex nodded and took a seat, then said, “It’s about merpeople.”

Washington nodded. “I appreciate the use of the correct term,” he noted and Alex mentally thanked John for correcting him. “What’s your question?”

“Well,” Alex shifted uncomfortably. “I was wondering how people knew that merpeople were wiped out. I mean, what's the evidence?”

“Probably the fact that there's been no sighting of them in ages,” Washington remarked dryly.

Alex opened his mouth to say Seabury had spotted one, but remembered what John said about not wanting anyone to know about merpeople. He didn't want Washington to record a merperson sighting to the king, and he didn't want to betray John either. And also he had no doubt that John would follow through on his threat to kill him.

“Moving away from that topic,” Alex said evasively. “Just for...curiosity reasons, what do you know about merpeople?”

Washington squinted at him, evidently suspicious about why he was asking, but answered all the same. “Well, they’re mainly a passive species, but they tend to be rather, ah, _defensive_. If you do so much as approach them, they have no problem dragging you down into the ocean and drown you. They’re reclusive, though,” Washington continued. “They don’t like to interact with humans too much for the most part, but there are always a few.”

“A few?” asked Alex, confused.

“Some merpeople find this...attraction to land,” Washington explained. “It’s the case for most sea creatures, but merpeople in particular. They want to come ashore, to explore land, they fall in love with humans. There are stories, true ones, about merpeople who do desperate things to go ashore. They meddle with magic, or try and go against the way their bodies are built, they do _anything,_ but,” He shrugged. “It never ends well.”

Alex swallowed dryly. “Fall in love with humans?” he asked, trying desperately to keep his voice level.

Washington raised an eyebrow, probably confused as to why romance was the one part that stuck out to Alex, then said, “Sometimes merpeople meet humans and sometimes they form strong friendships, sometimes they fall in love. And with love, well,” he paused. “It doesn’t end well. It just adds to their yearning to go to land, only to have the humans turn them away or for them to die from failed attempts to go ashore.”

“And uh.” Alex tried to find away to word his question properly, before giving up and asking straight, “If a human falls in love with a merperson?”

Washington gave a small laugh. “I say give up,” he advised. “There’s no way a human would leave land for love. It’s not worth it.” 

Alex nodded, attempting a weak smile. “Y-Yeah,” he said. “Not worth it.” He stood up, somewhat shakily and turned to Washington. “Thank you for telling me all this.”

“Not a problem,” Washington replied with a smile. “Am I going to get any explanation for this sudden obsession with merpeople?”

“There are a million things I haven’t done,” Alex said dramatically. “But explaining that isn’t one of them.”

Washington laughed, waving to him as he left, watching him with almost a fond expression, as if he were one of his sons. Maybe Captain George Washington wasn’t as intimidating as he thought.

Alex left the small house on the hill, waving to Mrs. Washington as he did so. He headed down to the beach, walking aimlessly, shoes sinking into the soft sand.

He took a breath of fresh sea air, involuntarily smiling. The ocean always seemed to calm him down, watching the rolling waves rhythmically lap against the shore. 

He was lost, to put simply. He had no idea how to deal with John and he couldn’t just _ask_ someone, because who would know about the allegedly extinct merpeople? He let out a sigh, continuing to walk down the beach, approaching a cluster of rocks. He climbed atop of them, lightly stepping on them until he reached the tallest one, looking out onto the sea.

The logical, the _right_ choice would be to stay far away from John and not to seek him out. To stay away from this whole mess he had indirectly caused.

_But then again_ , Alex thought, staring at the glimmer of a green tail swimming towards him from far out in the water. _You can’t exactly control your heart_.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Aromantic Peggy will always be my favorite <3 I don't really like the scene with John and his father because I feel it reads too much like a stereotypical fairy tale but I needed the conflict and I promise that I'm not going to throw in some random girl just to add drama.
> 
> Also the allegedly crazy fisherman will come back.


	4. Chapter 4

John let out a breath as he grabbed onto a rock a bit too close to shore, taking a moment to catch his breath. Taking that no one saw him, he was safe here.

“Hey,” said a voice next to him and John whirled around, startled at the sight of someone—a _human—_ behind him.

John felt his heart stop at the lopsided grin and sparkling dark eyes and vaguely noted how his jaw was dropping in a probably unattractive way.

“Alex?” he managed to spit out, still taking ahold of his shock.

Alex’s grin widened at that. “You remember my name!” he said delightedly. 

John looked around him quickly, before hissing, “You can’t just...walk up to me! I’m not supposed to be seen with you humans! I told you not to look for me!”

He made to move away, but Alex reached down and caught his wrist.

“Wait!” he cried out desperately. Noticing John’s panicked look, he let go quickly, sitting back and running a hand through his hair anxiously.

“I needed to see you again,” he confessed, wringing his hands in a nervous way John somehow found endearing. 

John hesitantly moved closer to Alex, drawn to him once more, even though his mind was screaming for him to stay away. “How do I know this isn’t a trap?” he challenged him. “How do I know that you’re not going to tell all your friends about me?”

“A sailor spotted you,” Alex blurted out and John’s heart stopped, a jolt of panic running through him. “But no one believes him!” Alex said quickly. “And I can make sure no one believes him by refuting him in the newspapers. But only if you say we can keep meeting.”

John raised an eyebrow. “Are you seriously bribing me to be your friend?” he asked and Alex grinned sheepishly.

“Maybe,” he admitted. “Is it working?”

John allowed himself to smile, and Alex seemed to beam at the sight of it. “Maybe it is,” John replied delicately. “I suppose we'll just have to keep meeting to see if it works out.”

“I suppose we shall,” Alexander agreed, trying to match John’s tone but failing through his smile. 

“You're a writer then,” John said, lured closer by the easy conversation. “I thought you were a sailor.”

“Navigator,” Alex corrected him. “I help steer the ship in the right direction. I also write in my free time to make extra money and publish it to newspapers. Writing has always been my strong point.” He said this with more than a hint of pride and John had no doubt he thought himself a great writer. 

“That’s interesting,” John said, trying vainly not to sound too interested but feeling as though he was failing.

“What do you do?” Alex asked, fixing his eyes on John. It was odd for John to have someone look at him with all their attention, and look at him in such a positive way no less, and he couldn’t help but enjoy it.

John leaned against the rock, looking up towards Alex. “I don’t really have a job. I’m the crown prince,” he explained. “My dad’s basically teaching me all about what to do when I’m king, all boring stuff like that.” He shot Alex a grin. “But I try to get out of his classes as much as possible.”

“A rebel, huh?” Alex joked, raising an eyebrow.

John laughed. “You could call it that,” he replied. “I mainly just get out of the—” He stopped himself, not wanting to reveal where he lived. “—the, uh, the kingdom and explore. I met some nereids the other day and a siren.”

Alex frowned. “Aren’t sirens evil?” he asked and John shook his head.

“My friend’s not,” he replied. “And, also, that’s a bit stereotypical. That’s like saying all merpeople are damsels in distress.”

Alex nodded slowly. “Like saying all humans are bad?” he suggested and John propped himself up on the rocks, using one hand to hold up his chin so he could look at Alex in the eye.

“That one’s mostly true,” John said, lips quirking upwards in a smile. “But maybe not for all humans.”

Alex leaned down closer towards John. “Well,” he said. “I’m honored to be ‘not all humans’.” He took John’s unoccupied hand and kissed it, smiling gently (and perhaps a bit flirtatiously too).

John’s eyes widened at the contact and he snatched his hand back, then looked at Alex, worried he’d take the outburst the wrong way, but Alex seemed unfazed, just continued to smile at John.

“Right, um,” John said, flustered, and Alex’s smile seemed to widen at that. “Anyway. I’m not usually allowed to go much places or talk to many creatures. This right here?” His voice dropped as if his father could somehow hear him. “This is _really_ bad. Going to the surface is crazy and talking to a human? I’m probably betraying my entire species.”

Alex’s smile faltered. “You’re not going to get in trouble for this, are you? Because I don’t want to hurt you. You don’t really need to keep meeting with me. I’ll defend the case that merpeople don’t actually exist even if you don’t like me, you know I’d do that right? I don’t mean to—”

“Alex,” John cut him off from his ramble. “I like you, okay? I want to keep meeting you, otherwise I wouldn’t be here listening to you right now.”

Alex sat back, relaxing. “Okay,” he breathed. “Okay.” He cast a worried look towards John. “But you’ll tell me if I’m stepping out of line, okay?”

“Of course,” John agreed easily. And then, at the sudden thought, he asked, “You haven’t told anyone about me, have you?”

“No,” Alex said. “Not even my best friend Hercules. Although I do think people are starting to wonder my sudden interest in merpeople all of a sudden.”

“And my friends are starting to wonder my sudden interest in land,” John countered. “Although I have been fascinated by land throughout my life. Ever since I first saw it.”

“Well, for my whole life, I firmly believed that merpeople were wiped out,” Alex said with a shrug. “You made it convincing.”

John sighed. “We had to. There were barely any of us left. I was younger when it happened but...I was there.”

Alex shook his head. “I wasn't even here when that happened. Grew up on an island some time away. From what I gathered, something threatened the humans and they attacked. Or vise versa. No one kept any records of it at all.”

“That's good,” John said. “For us anyway. So you won't tell anyone?” he asked.

Alex crossed his heart. “Promise,” he said solemnly. “And do you promise not to feed my remains to a giant squid?”

John laughed—and this was probably the most he had ever laughed in any conversation ever—and pretended to think, then said. “Well, I suppose I won't.” 

Alex started to say something, but John cut him off. “I should probably go,” he said, glancing behind him worriedly. “I don’t want people to suspect that I’m up here.”

Alex waved a hand. “It’s fine. I’ll see you again. Sometime?”

John nodded and turned to leave, but before he could, Alex grabbed his hand and squeezed it once, before smiling and turning away. “Bye, John.”

“Bye, Alex.” 

*

Alex took three things away from the conversation. 1) He didn’t have the entire merperson pod out to get him. 2)Their conversation was the easiest and most relaxed one he’d had in ages. 3) John looked even prettier in the sunlight. 

He could call it love, or even some childish crush, but whatever the case, he felt drawn towards John, and it just occurred to him now that he had never set up another date where they can meet again.

“Fuck!” he said loudly, and a few townsfolk turned to stare at him. Waving them off, he continued on, cursing himself for his stupidity. Now it seemed to be that there was no next date. If you could call their meetings a date. If John was even interested in him.

 _This was way too complicated_ , he realized with a start. _I don’t know what I’m getting into._

Not watching where he was going, he bumped into another townsfolk. Sputtering out a sorry, he lifted his eyes to see who it was and—

Shit.

“Aaron Burr, sir,” Alex said slowly, with faux cheerfulness. “Good to see you.” His eyes swept over his form and he backed up, spitting out, “Burr, since when were you a _human_?”

Aaron gave a shrug. He was a shapeshifter, a devious thing really, with no true form. “Since being gave me a place in this town.”

Alex spread his hands. “No one knows _what_ you are or what you do.”

Aaron gave another shrug. “They don’t need to know me,” he said easily. “My form isn’t what matters.”

Alex looked at him suspiciously. “Okay then. Human form looks good on you,” he said begrudgingly.

Aaron nodded, looking somewhat relieved at his approval. “My question for you is what the heck are you doing out here?”

“Looking at the sea,” Alex lied.

“You looked like you were talking to the water,” Aaron noted. “Did you find a nereid?”

“If I say yes will you go away?” Alex challenged him, turning away, but Aaron caught his arm.

“Listen, Alex,” he said quietly. “I don’t even remotely like you, but if you’re talking to some sea creature, be careful.”

Alex blinked. “Be careful? Why?”

Aaron looked around nervously. “I know—I _love_ —someone who’s originally from the ocean. She crossed onto land because her species can do that. But she told me not everyone is like that and, despite that, they still want to try and get onto land. I was lucky and neither of us was hurt, but I don’t want you or whoever you’re meeting to end up torn apart.” He placed a hand on Alex’s shoulder. “Word of advice: Unless they’re a water sprite, I say get away. Before it’s too late.”

Alex sucked in a quick breath. “Yeah. Okay. I’ll be careful, Aaron.”

Aaron nodded. “And I won’t tell anyone about whoever you’re meeting if you don’t tell anyone about the water sprite.”

“I won’t,” Alex promised.

“Then we’re done here.” Without even bothering to wave, he walked away, Alex watching him leave until he couldn't anymore.

Alex sighed, toying with a piece of his hair.

_What have I gotten myself into?_

*

“What have I gotten myself into?” John muttered. It had been a day since he had seen Alex again, and he was a whirlwind of different emotions from elation to worry to downright terror. He was lost and had no idea what to do.

He needed help. 

John cleared his throat, moving to a more secluded part of the ocean. “Hey, nereid sisters?” he called out, hoping they were listening. “I need your help. It’s not urgent but...it’s important to me.”

He waited, smiling when he saw the three sisters begin to form in the water. 

“What do you need help with, John?” Angelica asked, patiently waiting as her form finished solidifying. 

“Um.” John’s tail flicked back and forth nervously. “I kind of have a relationship problem? A crush problem? A really dumb problem?”

Eliza clapped her hands. “A _love_ problem?” she asked excitedly, lunging forward and grabbing his arm. “Tell us tell us tell us!”

“Okay, okay!” John shook her off his arm and she did a backflip, swimming up to face him again. “So, I met this guy.”

“I say he’s not worth your time,” Peggy said immediately, shaking her head. Angelica hit her gently on the head. 

“Let him finish,” she chided Peggy and Peggy rolled her eyes, then nodded at John to go on.

“Okay,” John said again. “I met this guy and he’s really nice and understanding and I really like him but I don’t think he’s necessarily someone who’s, um, right for me? Like, I don’t think things will be ever to work out between us.”

“Hmm,” Eliza said, tapping her chin. “You really like this guy?”

John nodded. “And keep in mind I literally only saw him twice,” he added. “I mean, in those two times we really clicked, but it was still only twice.”

“You should go for it!” Peggy said encouragingly and Eliza nodded in agreement. John turned to Angelica for her verdict on the matter and she smiled at him.

“You shouldn’t pass up this chance, John,” Angelica said. “If it doesn’t work out, it doesn’t, but if does, then, well, it could be something amazing.”

“And what if this guy were a human?” he asked meekly.

To say the nereids were shocked was an understatement.

“What?” Eliza shrieked. “John—What?”

“A _human_?” Peggy gasped, reeling back from him as if _he_ were a human. “You couldn’t have—”

“John, you didn’t!” Angelica said, anger and fear flashing across her face. “Do you know what could happen to you? How did this happen? He could _kill_ you!”

“I doubt that,” John muttered. “He’s like, really short. I could take him down any day.” 

“That’s not the point, John!” Peggy said, who’s shock and fear seemed to have been replaced with concern. “He could tell the other humans merpeople are still alive! Do you know what this could _mean_?”

“He’s not going to do that,” John protested. “Humans aren’t a race of bloodthirsty animals. I mean, I guess some of them are, but really! He’s not like that!”

Angelica shook her head rapidly. “No, no, no, no, no,” she said adamantly. “Forget it. You can _not_ trust him.” She looked over to her sister. “Eliza, back me up.”

Eliza bit her lip, swimming up towards him. “John, I know the last thing you want to hear is to stay away from him. And I know the last thing you’ll _do_ is stay away from him. So I’m going to tell you this.” She put her hands on his shoulders. “I trust your judgement and I trust you’ll be careful. I’m just going to say _please_ tell me if anything happens that worries you or that you’re uncertain about and we’ll all help. Promise me you’ll do that and promise you won’t put your complete trust in him.”

John nodded. “I promise,” he said. He smiled and placed his hands over Eliza’s. “Thank you, Eliza.”

Eliza nodded and drew him into a hug (because Eliza was just that affectionate kind of person) and pulled away, looking at Angelica and Peggy.

“Don’t argue with me on this one,” she warned them and they backed off.

“Eliza’s right,” Angelica said, and Peggy sighed, as if it were painful to admit. “But we’re still going to worry.”

“Thanks,” John said, visibly relaxing, reassured by their support. “I needed that.” 

“Is that it? You seem like you want to say one more thing,” Angelica noted, looking at him up and down.

“No, you’re right,” John replied, hesitating and turning over the words in his head before saying them. “Is it possible for merpeople to go on land?” When all three nereids immediately took in a breath, he added, “I don’t want it _permanently_ , I just want to see what it’s like up there.”

“John,” Angelica said, her voice hard, but John could tell she was worried. “I told you what it’s like up there. I’m pretty sure Maria has too. You know it’s dangerous.”

“I don’t care,” John said, and that was the truth, really. “I know merpeople aren’t going to be exposed simply by me if I’m careful, and if I die? So what? I’d rather go like this than live a life down here thinking what I could've done. So is there a way?”

Eliza shook her head regretfully. “Not for a merperson, I’m afraid. Biologically, you can’t survive, and we would need powerful magic, which we don’t have down here.”

“Well actually…” Peggy spoke up for the first time. “We do.” When all eyes turned on her, she explained, “There’s a sorcerer who lives in the Depths, in a secluded cave with his magic. His name is Thomas.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I just want to let you guys know that I decided to do NaNoWriMo and started an original novel. Now that I'm working on that as well as this one, updates may be slowed. I'm definitely not giving up on this fic, don't worry! Updates just may be late.
> 
> And, as always, thank you so much for all your comments and kudos <3


	5. Chapter 5

John had heard of him, a not-so-normal merperson who had learned magic, but he had disappeared once the fighting between humans and merpeople began.

“Wait, wait, wait,” Angelica said, holding up her hand. “How do you know about this and I don't?”

“Remember when you two went out ashore because you were ‘looking for a mind at work’ and I stayed back because it was in the middle of a fucking war?” Peggy asked, raising her eyebrows at her sisters. “Well, I went exploring and I found this cave. I talked to some sirens and they told me about who lived there.”

“Why didn't you tell us?” Eliza asked, hurt.

“Spite,” Peggy replied vaguely.

“You think he could help me?” John broke in.

“Is his magic reliable?” Angelica asked.

Peggy held up her hands. “I don't know!” she said defensively. “I only heard rumors.”

“So he can help me,” John promoted her and Peggy hesitated.

“I don't know,” she replied honestly. “But he's your only--and admittedly probably worst--option.”

“Worst?” Eliza asked and Peggy shook her head.

“Talk to Maria,” she said. “Sirens are on top of everything. I'm sure she has some clue as to who he is.”

*

“Do I know Thomas?” Maria asked, looking down at the four. “Of _course_ I know Thomas. _Everyone_ knows Thomas.”

“What have you heard about him?” John asked and Maria rolled her eyes.

“Heard? I've _met_ him. He’s a giant flirt, tries to seduce all the sirens, like _please_. Just because your standards are lower than a sea trench doesn't mean ours are too.”

“Suddenly my opinion of this guy just hit rock bottom,” Angelica muttered. 

“He's a complete loser,” Maria said with a nod. “My friend Sally rejected him and he never left his cave, claiming he was ‘sick’.”

“I heard that he was a recluse, a hidden sorcerer,” John said. “Now I'm starting to think otherwise.” He had also heard he was a coward, for running away from the war, and that was now probably definitely true.

“His magic,” Peggy interrupted. “Is it real?”

“Oh, it's real all right,” Maria confirmed. “He's constantly showing off. I've never seen him do big spells, but I'm almost certain he could. He's actually quite smart when he stops being all...Thomas-y.”

“Thanks, Maria,” John said, smiling. “We appreciate your help.”

“Anytime,” Maria replied easily. “Why do you want to know about Thomas anyway? It's not like…” she trailed off, eyes hardening. “John,” she said and John winced. “Are you trying to get up to the surface?”

“No,” John lied. “I promise it’s not for the surface. It's purely for my kingdom. But, um, merpeople confidentiality and all.”

Maria nodded slowly, watching John suspiciously. “Okay, then,” she said. “He's not too much a threat, Thomas,” she continued. “But don't get on his bad side and remember: He's smarter than you think.”

“Thanks again,” John said to her. “I'll see you around, Maria!”

Maria smiled (and if it was uncertain, he didn’t comment on it) and waved. “Anytime. And please, be careful.”

*

Peggy led him down to the sorcerer’s cave, which was very, very, very deep down.

“Eliza’s terrified of the Depths,” Peggy had explained, when he asked why the other two weren’t coming. “Angelica too, but she doesn’t want to admit it.”

John had never been there, so he didn’t know, but now he was beginning to see why everyone was so scared of it once his eyes had adjusted to the pitch black darkness.

The scariest part, he decided, was not knowing what everything was. White glowing iridescent beings passed him, a fish with glassy eyes and too many teeth, a pure white octopus skulking over a rock. If those were rocks. It was hard to tell.

Peggy took a glance around, weirdly unaffected by the strange environment. “Doesn’t seem to be any sea monsters, no krakens in sight,” she noted. “It’s safe to go on.”

“Safe?” John squeaked, looking sharply from left to right. “When is it _not_ safe?”

“Nothing is not safe,” Peggy chided him. “Everything could kill you.” She beckoned him to follow and took off, swimming deeper into the Depths, John (now uncertainly) following.

They finally reached the ocean floor, with strange creatures covering the bottom, an underwater volcano blowing out smoke.

Peggy wrinkled her nose as some worm-like creature shot out of a hole and back down again. “See, this is why I don’t go down here often,” she explained to John, as if what they were seeing _wasn’t_ mind-boggling. “Everything’s so much uglier.”

John shuddered as some crab with too manly limbs walked across the seafloor. “Too true,” he muttered. “Now where do we go.”

“This way,” Peggy said. “Or at least I hope it’s this way and I didn’t actually get us lost and we’re not actually stuck here forever.”

With that confidence, she led him over to a cave, hidden in the darkness of the shadows and in a rock ledge. It looked eery, a slight glow emitting from it, probably from all the magic residue.

“Well, here we are,” Peggy said, careful not to go too close to the cave. “That’s where he lives.” She looked at him carefully. “You should probably go alone, but I could wait for you?”

Her gaze was unfocused, though, eyes flickering nervously around her, and John shook his head. “No, you go back,” he told her. “I can find my way back.”

“Oh thank the stars,” Peggy breathed, before flashing him a thumbs up and a grin. “So, I’ll be off then. See you!”

“See you,” John responded, waving. “Bye!”

Once Peggy had left, a bright blur in the otherwise dark waters, John took in a deep breath. The deep ocean suddenly seemed a lt scarier without Peggy.

_Well_ , he thought. _Might as well go in_.

He ventured into the cave. It was lit by a low blue glow, letting him see the stalactites and stalagmites that jutted up from the rock and the strange corals and plants that adorned the cave. He went further in and the glow turned warmer, and he almost felt safe. Almost.

He reached the center of the cave, and peered in, not wanting to give himself away just yet. 

Thomas was younger than he had expected, maybe just a little bit older than John himself. He had a mass of curly hair and dark skin, and that was all normal, but his _tail_. Unlike most of the fish-based tails other merpeople had, he had the tentacles of an octopus, long and curling and oddly a bright magenta. Next to him, reading a book, was another merperson, with the tail of a black eel, idly reading a book, once in awhile, throwing out facts to Thomas.

_That must be James, then_ , John decided. He had heard of him too, Thomas’s friend who tagged along with him.

Thomas must have caught sight of him, because his eyes widened and he beckoned John closer. John tentatively swam towards him, feeling uncomfortable under both the stares of James and Thomas. 

“A merperson!” Thomas said in shock, looking down on John, a tentacle reaching out to ruffle his hair. John bat it away in annoyance. “I haven’t seen another in _ages_.” Thomas frowned, looking John down. “You look familiar. Who are you related to?”

“Um,” John said uneasily. “My dad’s the king.”

Thomas snapped his fingers. “Queen Eleanor!” he said triumphantly. “You look exactly like her. Curls and all. She was a good queen,” he continued thoughtfully. “Shame that she died. Remember that?” he addressed John. “Never seen again. Kind of spooky, huh?”

John didn’t reply, just stared at him, mouth not moving. He tried not to think of his mother very often, and to have Thomas just talk about her death so _casually_ …

“Thomas!” James snapped, setting down his book. “Be _tactful_ for once.” To John, he said, “Sorry about that. Thomas _is_ sorry, _right_?”

Thomas nodded meekly. “Sorry,” he muttered.

John looked at James in silent thanks, rethinking his entire assumption of him. He had always thought that James was Thomas’s minion, but now, looking at them together, he seemed to be more like 90% of Thomas’s impulse control.

“What do you need?” James asked.

“I need a spell cast,” John said. Looking at Thomas, he clarified, “A spell to go ashore. Do you have that?”

“ _Do_ I have that?” Thomas asked himself. He glanced at James for answers. “Do I have that spell, James?”

James rolled his eyes. “Yes, Thomas, we do. Thomas only casts the spells,” he explained. “I’m the one who creates them, writes them down, or finds them.”

“He wasn’t born with magic, unfortunately,” Thomas said with a nod. “But I was, so we teamed up. So, a spell to make you human! That can be done, although there are a few side-effects. We’ll discuss that later,” he continued breezily, at the expression on John’s face. “I just---Wait.” His face hardened. “You’re the King’s son, aren’t you? I’m sorry. I don’t do anything for him.”

“No, no, no,” John said quickly. “I’m not working for him. This is actually going _against_ my father’s wishes.”

“So if I help you, then _I’m_ in trouble with King Henry,” Thomas said and shook his head, thinking. “Here’s what we’re going to do. Come back here next week, when we’ve sorted things out. The price will be _much_ higher.”

John nodded in resignation. “Okay,” he said. “I’ll do that then.”

“Great!” Thomas clapped his hands. “See you back tomorrow!”

“Be prepared to barter,” James advised. “You might even get a good deal.”

“I--um. Thanks,” John said, put in even more unease. “I’ll see you tomorrow.”

He exited the cave, feeling Thomas and James’ stares prickling the back of his head. When he swam out of the cave, he was greeted by the sudden blackness of the Depths and immediately felt trapped and sick and unable to see _anything_.

He headed up immediately for the surface, thinking only of _light_ , unable to see the giant ship right above him.

*

Would Alex be lying if he said he wasn't paying attention to anything at all?

Yes. Yes he would be.

He stared down at the waters, wondering if John was down there. Wondering what he was doing. How he was doing. If he was--

“Sir!” Hercules called, jarring him out of his thoughts. “I see a sea creature coming up, seems large. Think we should investigate it?”

Washington thought for a moment, then nodded. “Any information we can get to the King is better than none.”

The ship slowed and sailors peered out of the sides of the ship to try and find the monster. Hercules seemed to have lost it, and Alex rolled his eyes and looked over to see for himself. Then his heart stopped.

He’d recognize that tail anywhere, and it was coming to the surface with no means of stopping.

“Sir,” he said, and he was proud his voice didn't falter. “I think it's a selkie. Looks like it’s going out to sea. No need to stop.” 

Washington nodded. He trusted Alex which made lying to him all the harder, but it was for a good cause, or at least he hoped so.

The sailors left the ship side and the _Sons of Liberty_ began to move once more just as John broke the surface. He caught Alex’s eye, looking terrified from being almost caught, and Alex mouthed to him, _Same time, same place._

John nodded and disappeared again. He hoped he understood.

“Hamilton!” Washington called. “Back to work.” Alex nodded. “Yes sir,” he said quickly, but he could hardly concentrate the rest of the journey.

*

Alex was starting to wish he had chosen a different place to meet with John. The rocks were hard and cold, the waves lapping at his feet. But it was worth it.

Just when he thought he was getting stood up (and by a merperson, no less), he spotted the flicker of a bright green tail and suddenly John was in front of him, smiling nervously.

“Hey,” he said.

“Hey,” John said.

“So, I saw you today…” Alex started and John winced.

“That was a mistake on my part,” he explained. “I was down in the Depths, like the really low part of the sea, and it was so _dark_ and I just had to see light. I wasn’t really thinking clearly.”

“Why were you down there?” Alex asked and John stiffened.

“I...um...stuff,” John said vaguely. “It’s complicated.”

Alex nodded, not wanting to pry. “So,” he said. “I promised you that I’d defend you, didn’t I? Well, I did.” He pulled out a newspaper, brandishing it proudly. “Ta-da!” John’s face flashed in confusion. “What?”

“The sailor that saw you?” Alex reminded him. “I promised to defend you, right? So people wouldn’t suspect there were still merpeople around.”

“Oh. _Oh_ ,” John said. “Right--yes. That’s why I’m here. Right.”

Alex simply grinned and handed the paper to him, displaying the article, _The Sailor Refuted_.

John read over it. “Sorry if I’m a bit slow at reading,” he said to Alex while he read. “My father taught me how to read and write but merpeople don’t use it that much.” Once he finished with it, he handed it back to Alex, the paper now damp from his hands.

“That was amazing!” John was grinning, and it took Alex a moment to think, _That was me. He’s smiling because of me_. “You made him sound he was crazy! You really have a way of words.”

“Thanks,” Alex said, relieved that John thought so. “It was easy, though. No one really believed Seabury in the first place.”

“That’s two times now, isn’t it?” John muttered, pushing back a stray curl. “I’m getting careless. I need to watch out.”

“Should we stop this?” Alex asked, once again uncertain. “I don’t want to put you in any danger…”

“No,” John said quickly. “No, it’s fine. This is my choice. So, um, I was wondering…”

“Yeah?” Alex prompted him.

“I was wondering if you’d like to meet more often.” John didn’t seem to be ashamed of asking at all, instead staring at Alex in the eye, straightforward and unwavering. “So? Want to set up a time and place?”

“Yes, totally, definitely,” Alex said in a rush, and maybe that was too enthusiastic, because John was now looking at him strangely. “I mean sure. That’d be great.” He shut his mouth because that seemed to be the best course of action at this point.

“Okay,” John said, the barest hint of a smile on his face. “How about here, same time, same place, once a week?”

“Once a week. Here. Yeah,” Alex breathed. He grinned at John. “Sounds good for me.”

“So,” John said. “What do you write about?”

Alex shrugged. “A lot of stuff,” he replied. “Mostly civil issues, essays about sexism, discrimination, some writing on endangered species…”

“The constant fishing of sea creatures is completely unnecessary. It's impractical and unethical and hurting _humans_ more than it's benefiting them,” John agreed.

Alex decided that if he wasn't in love yet, he definitely was now.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I had to postpone Lafayette for a couple more chapters, unfortunately. (Maybe chapter 7?) The process to turn John into a human is taking longer than expected!
> 
> And also, that election...I don't think anyone wants to hear me ramble, but just know that my tumblr inbox is open if anyone needs to talk. I hope everyone stays safe <3


	6. Chapter 6

John didn’t know if he was dreading or looking forward to his meeting with Thomas. _Next week_ seemed a long time away, but it was creeping up on him.

He found himself straying farther and farther away from the kingdom, choosing instead to talk with Maria and the nereids, only really talking to his siblings rather than the other merpeople.

The day drew nearer, and it was time to return to the Depths. He didn’t want to, didn’t want to return to the suffocating darkness or the chill that seemed to settle deep in his bones, but really, what else could he do?

“So you came back,” Thomas said, looking John up and down when he entered the cavern again. “And I thought you wouldn’t.”

“I told you he would,” James said. “The lure of land is too strong.”

John bit back the retort forming in his mouth, because James was right, he _knew_ James was right. “Your price,” he said instead. “What is it?”

Thomas crossed his arms, mock upset. “No hello? How are you? I’m hurt, John.”

John rolled his eyes. “Hello. How are you. Can we get down to business?”

“I’m doing very well, thank you for asking,” Thomas replied instead, and now both James and John rolled their eyes.

“What do you want from me for the spell?” John asked impatiently. “Please tell me it’s not like my soul. Or my body. Or something like that.”

Thomas wrinkled his nose. “Your soul? Why would I want _that_? A few years ago this mermaid was offering her _voice_. What would I do with a voice? No, what I want from you is much easier.”

“Go on then.”

“I have several conditions before I perform the spell,” Thomas continued, ticking off his fingers. “One, tell the King I am released of _all_ charges. Two, you give a piece of gold. I know the King has a stash somewhere in his palace.”

“Gold?” James asked, mystified. “What do we need _gold_ for?”

“It’s pretty,” Thomas responded, before turning back to John. “And thirdly, I need to know what to tie the spell to.”

“What?” John asked, completely confused.

Thomas sighed, exasperated. “I can’t just make you human. I need an anchor, something that the spell is based around. Something on the surface I can use to cast the spell. Why do you want to go there?”

“Exploration,” John said immediately. “Curiosity. I want to see what’s up there.”

“Is that all?” Thomas raised an eyebrow skeptically.

John hesitated for a few minute, then reluctantly said, “Okay, there’s a guy.”

“Love,” James said with a sage nod. “That makes everything _so_ much easier.”

“Kind of unreliable though,” Thomas mused. “But powerful nonetheless.” Snapping his fingers at John, he asked, “Name?”

“Alexander Hamilton,” he answered.

Thomas waved his hand and the water swirled, forming a murky scene in the water. John watched, transfixed, as Alex walked through a bustling market, talking and laughing with other humans, and he couldn’t help but think, _I want to be there_.

“Ooh, he’s cute,” Thomas said, examining the mirage. He winked at John. “I get now why you couldn’t fall for my charms.”

“Um,” John said, who was pretty sure Thomas hadn’t been flirting with him, except for oddly excessive amounts of winking.

“Anyway,” James interrupted, and Thomas waved his hand, causing the scene to disappear. “We need something of Alexander’s. It could be anything, a watch, a strand of hair, a signature, a teardrop. Something from him to link the spell to.”

“How does that even work, anyway?” Thomas asked James absentmindedly.

“Magic,” James said vaguely and Thomas grinned at John. “He doesn’t know,” he stage-whispered.

“Back to business?” John asked instead and James nodded, shooting a look at Thomas.

“So, to top it off, we need you to release charges on us, grab us some gold (for some reason),” he added in parentheses, giving Thomas another look. “We also need something of Alexander Hamilton’s to cast the spell. Got all that?”

“Um, yeah,” John nodded. “Yeah. I’ll come back when I have that.”

“Perfect,” Thomas said, clapping his hands. “You'll be up on shore before you know it.”

“Or, like, dead,” James added. “You never know with these sort of spells.”

He could never tell when James was joking or not.

*

“This is a bad idea,” Angelica said to him, shaking her head. “This is a _really_ bad idea.”

“I know that already,” John said. “But I’m doing it anyway.”

“I think it’s cute,” Eliza offered. “A love story.”

Angelica frowned at her. “That’s because you’re a hopeless romantic,” she said. “You need to be more practical about this.”

“I think _you_ need to lighten up,” Eliza shot back. “It’s John’s decision.”

“And a stupid one at that,” Angelica argued. “I mean, he can do what he wants, I suppose, but it’s still not smart.”

“I’ll be okay,” John said confidently. “I’ll be careful and everything will be okay.”

“Being careful isn’t going to help you,” Angelica said, crossing her arms. 

“John’s smart, he can take care of himself,” Eliza responded, mimicking Angelica’s pose.

“When are we going to see you again?” Peggy asked instead, ignoring her sisters. “I don’t want to lose you up there forever.”

“I doubt the change will be permanant,” John reassured her. “I’ll be back before you know I’m gone.”

“You better,” Angelica said. “‘Cause I am not going to lose you.”

John smiled at her. “You won’t.”

*

Talking to the nereids was easy. Talking to his family, however, was an entirely different matter.

“So,” his father was saying as they gathered for another family meeting. “I was thinking of trying to expand the kingdom westward during the next few years.”

“No one cares,” Mary whispered, James nodding alongside her. Henry didn’t hear, probably for the better.

“Jack, I need you to stay here in the kingdom to help with--”

“Actually,” John interrupted him. “I’m not going to do that.”

Henry shot a look at Martha to as for an explanation. Martha shrugged and looked back towards John.

“What is it this time?” his father asked, exasperation laced in his words.

“I’m going to the surface,” John replied.

“The surface?” James looked at him incredulously. “You can’t go to the surface?”

“Jack, that’s impossible,” Martha said. “I don’t know what you’re thinking, but merpeople can’t go ashore.”

“Martha’s right,” Mary told him, speaking in her “smart” voice, one she put on often for John, even with their six year age difference. “You physically can’t go on land unless you…” Her eyes widened. “You didn’t find _magic_!”

“John,” Henry said, eyes staring John down. “What did you do?”

“I found a sorcerer. He’s going to turn me into a human.”

“Not Thomas,” Henry said, shaking his head. “Please tell me it’s not Thomas.”

“It’s Thomas,” John confirmed.

“John, you are not going to the surface, and you are _not_ making a deal with Thomas,” Henry ordered. “This issue is over.”

“Well,” John said, even though Martha was mouthing for him to shut up and James was shaking his head furiously and Mary was bracing herself for an outburst. “It’s not really your decision to make.”

Before Henry could speak over him, John began to talk again, raising his voice slightly. “I need your help to go ashore and I want your permission to do so, but I’m not looking for you to tell me what to do. I _know_ this is a mistake and I know this is a bad idea and I know I could _die_ , but I need to do this. I need to see what’s up there.”

“Jack,” Henry started, and John knew he was getting through to him if he started to use his nickname. “I can’t lose my eldest son.”

John shrugged. “You’re going to lose him whatever you do. I’m not going to stop trying to do this. I just want us to leave off on a good note if something bad does happen.”

“Your life is in jeopardy,” Henry warned him. “Magic is unreliable. _Sorcerer’s_ are unreliable. Our kingdom won’t be hurt if you’re find out, but you...you could ruin everything you have.”

“My life is mine to fuck up, I guess,” John replied. “So?”

Henry hesitated, looking at Martha and at James and at Mary. Then he said, “Is this permanent?”

“I don’t think so.”

“You’ll come back?”

“Definitely.”

“And you promise to be safe?”

“Cross my heart.” 

His father’s shoulders sagged, an air of defeat. “What does Thomas need?”

“He wants a piece of gold,” John said, trying to remember Thomas’s demands.

“Gold?” Henry frowned. “What does he need _gold_ for?”

“It’s pretty?” John offered, and Henry shook his head. “What else?” he asked.

“He wants you to release him of all charges.”

“I can’t--” Henry stopped himself, then nodded. “I can do that,” he conceded. “It’s not like we were ever going to capture him anyway. That’s not going to stop him from being a villain in our history.”

“And that’s it,” John said. He looked at his father, thought for a moment, before flinging his arms around him. “Thank you so much. I just need to do this.”

Henry seemed surprised at first, before returning the gesture. “I know,” he said softly. “Just stay alive, okay? Don’t be like your mother--” He cut himself off. “Just stay alive.”

“I will,” John promised, pulling away. 

“Exploration, right? That’s it? Anything else?” Henry asked.

John thought of Alex, a human, and replied, “No, that’s about it.”

*

So maybe talking to his family wasn’t that hard either. But the third and final thing he needed was something of Alex’s. How was he supposed to do that?”

He waited at their usual location for Alex to come. He was glad it was high tide, the waves coming up to his neck, grateful most of him was in the water. At times like these, he wondered how he was ever going to survive ashore.

“John?” John couldn’t help the smile that tugged on his face as Alex began to walk towards him, stepping carefully on the slippery rocks. “You came?”

“No need to act so surprised about it,” John replied, watching as he sat down on a rock above John, bare feet dipping into the water. “I promised I’d come.”

“You did,” Alex agreed, sweeping his hair out of his face. It wasn’t the nicest of days, John had to admit. The sky was a gray, dreary color and the waves were harsher than he’d like, and it was drizzling, raindrops mixing in with sea spray. 

Alex looked down on John, the intensity of his gaze, still not something he was used to. Rather unexpectedly, Alex asked, “Aren’t you cold?”

“What?” John said, confused.

“In the water,” Alex clarified. “My toes are feeling numb as is.”

“Oh,” John said. “No, not really. I mean, I feel kind of a chill, but other than that, it’s perfectly comfortable. It’s you humans who are the ones with no cold tolerance.”

“Hey,” Alex raised his hands in surrender. “I grew up on an island way out there.” He pointed outwards towards the ocean. “It was nothing but tropical waters and warm weather. I’m not used to this cold.”

“Why did you move?” John asked and Alex tensed. Backtracking, he said quickly, “You don’t need to tell me anything though.”

“No, no, it’s okay. Just…” Alex sighed. “Just haven’t thought about that place in a while. You asked why I left, right? It was because there was nothing for me there. I had no family, no friends, no _house_...so when people raised money for me to board a ship to here…” He shrugged. “Well, I took it.”

“No family?” John said softly. “What happened?”

Alex hesitated again, and John took his hand carefully. Alex smiled at the contact and started to talk again. “My father left and my mother died. Then my brother left and a hurricane swept through the town. All I had was my writing, and I guess that was enough.”

“And things are better now?” John guessed, squeezing his hand once.

“Yeah.” Alex smiled. “They are.” They stayed like that for a moment, before Alex suddenly said, “Oh!” and pulled out a piece of paper.

John frowned. “What’s that?”

“It’s a letter,” Alex said. “For you. Though it’s paper and I don’t really know how that’ll hold up underwater but I didn’t really have anything else to write on and I wanted to give this to you and...yeah.”

John blinked, taken aback by Alex’s sudden rambling, before reaching up and taking it and reading.

_Cold in my professions, warm in my friendships, I wish, my Dear John, it might be in my power, by action rather than words, to convince you that I love you. You should not have taken advantage of my sensibility to steal into my affections without my consent. But as you have done it and as we are generally indulgent to those we love, I shall not scruple to pardon the fraud you have committed, on condition that for my sake, if not for your own, you will always continue to merit the partiality, which you have so artfully instilled into me..._

“It’s not a love letter,” Alex said quickly and almost rushed. “Unless you want it to be. But you probably don’t. It’s just a letter I needed to write, and--”

John stared, transfixed at the paper, tuning out Alex’s words, because when was the last time he actually read something to _him_? “Can I keep it?”

Alex broke off (and, then, realizing John hadn’t heard a word he had said, hadn’t picked up in how very romantic it was, breathed a sigh of relief). “Of course you can. But the water…”

John reread the letter. “I know it’ll probably be destroyed, but...I just want to have it with me.”

Alex looked confused, then surprised, then beaming. “You want it with you? Of course you can have it! I mean, I wrote it for you. So you like it?”

John nodded, rereading the letter. “It’s beautiful writing. The words flow into each other very nicely.” He winced as the ink began to bleed due to his damp hands. “But there won’t be many words very soon.”

Alex shrugged and smiled. “As long as you are aware of my affections, I think it’s okay.”

“What does that even mean?” John muttered.

Alex laughed, but he never did answer John’s question..

*

“So?” Thomas asked. “The items? You have them?”

“Yes,” John said. “My father agreed to drop all charges.” He tossed a gold coin at Thomas. “And there’s your coin.” 

“Nice,” Thomas said, tossing the piece of priceless treasure onto the floor. Both James and John winced. “And?”

“Something of Alex’s,” John said, regretfully handing him the letter. It hurt to watch it be taken roughly into Thomas’s hands, but it’d be worth it, when he could be with Alex ashore and be able to hold his words without ruining it.

Thomas examined the paper, soaked and barely legible, paper already beginning to disintegrate. “Is this usable?” he asked James.

James squinted at it, then nodded. “Yes,” he said. “We can work with that.”

Thomas turned to John and smiled, revealing teeth bright in the cave’s dim light. “Well,” he said. “Let’s get started.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Totally didn't forget to post a chapter today...
> 
> Sorry this chapter seemed a bit hard to follow. I mainly needed a wrap-up of John's life underwater before he went on land. Next chapter is human John and Lafayette!


	7. Chapter 7

“Before we begin,” Thomas said. “I’d like to go over a few things. This spell lasts for a year before it has to be renewed, and it doesn’t completely turn you into a human either. You turn into a human when the sun rises above the water and back into a merperson when the sun hits the water.”

“He just says that to sound cool,” James said dismissively. “You’ll turn human at around seven in the morning and seven at night.”

“How am I going to _sleep_?” John asked.

“I have that covered,” Thomas said easily. “Because you’re such a nice customer, I added sustainability spell. You still need to sleep and eat and all that, but not as often. I figured you’d probably homeless and poor to as well, so I took pity on you.”

John hadn’t even thought about his status on land. Well, it was too late to worry about that now, he supposed. He was at the point of no turning back.

“Because this spell is tied to Alex,” Thomas continued. “He can’t tell the difference between you as a human or a merperson. And you can _not_ let him find out,” he said seriously. “The spell will be broken then. Understand?”

John nodded. “I understand.” After a moment's thought, he added, “Is there any consequences for this?” There always seemed to be with these sort of spells.

“Well...the thing is…” Thomas sounded suddenly awkward. “I’ve never actually done this sort of spells before.”

John nearly choked. “ _What_? How can you not know?”

Thomas held up his hands defensively. “Hey, not many merpeople come to me! I’m positive I can do it. I’ve done harder.”

“What about that time you made an island collapse?” James asked dryly.

“I also managed to calm the entire sea during a storm,” Thomas replied. “Have some faith, James.”

James held up his hands. “I stand corrected,” he said. “You can do this.”

“ _Thank_ you.” Thomas turned back to John. “So! Let’s get started, shall we?” He held out his hand and James handed him the paper. John felt a lurch in his stomach, thinking that this wasn't such a good idea after and maybe the ocean wasn't so bad and _maybe he didn't want to die, okay?_

“You’ve got the spell down?” James asked him. “Remember what we went over?”

“Yes, yes, I remember,” Thomas said, annoyed, but there was a softer side to his words as he spoke to James. 

Taking the paper in both hands and using one of his tentacles to lift a spell book, Thomas began to perform magic.

It didn’t seem as though he was doing anything, but then a purple-pink glow began to encase the paper and it seemed to fill the cavern. A low thrum vibrated through the ground and John could feel it in his bones. The magic seemed to steadily flow from Thomas, vibrating outwards, into the water, into the stone, and into John’s bloodstream, running through his body.

He could only stare in wonder as the magic continued. James was watching Thomas very carefully, but he didn’t seem as in awe, leaving John to wonder, _was this a normal occasion_? Thomas’s eyes were closed, seemingly unknowing of what he was causing.

Shivers began to run up his spine as the light grew brighter, unbearably so, and John squeezed his eyes shut. The resonance grew louder and louder and, even through his closed eyes, he could tell it was getting brighter and brighter until…

Everything stopped.

It was like a vaccum had consumed all the magic, a seal had been firmly placed over it. John cracked an eye open. James was at Thomas’s side, speaking to him lowly. Thomas looked exhausted, but he was grinning. There was something different happening to his body, a low burn in the pit of his stomach, slowly spreading to his arms, his neck, his tail.

“Better get to the surface.” John heard Thomas distantly say. “Don’t want to drown when you turn human.”

_Drown...turn human…_

Right. Humans couldn’t breathe underwater.

John gasped as the pain grew, a warning sign to _get out_ and he swam towards the cave’s entrance, swimming out into the darkness of the Depths. He swam upwards, closer and closer, and then…

He couldn’t breathe. He couldn’t feel his tail (whatever he _could_ feel...well, it wasn’t a tail, that was all John knew). 

His lungs began to burn, screaming for air, and he couldn’t make it, until he kicked whatever took place of his tail, and, with the last of his energy, burst through the surface of the water.

John gasped, taking in lungfuls of air. He looked down and saw legs and nearly became sick, because, sure, he wanted to be human, but to see this spindly little sticks attached to him, _moving_...well...it was freaky.

Swimming came natural. That was a relief, because if it didn’t, he would’ve drowned by now. He knew the ocean, knew how it worked, and moved his legs to stay afloat.

Once the panic had died down and his heart stopped racing, John looked around. He could swim to shore but he’d have nowhere to go. And he was pretty sure humans had this thing where you had to wear clothing. That didn’t make much sense to John where, underwater, clothing just weighed you down and made you more likely to drown in the dangerous sea. He only saw clothing on Maria, as sirens lived primarily above the water, and the nereids, who wore a floaty sort of dress.

John took a breath to calm himself. “Okay,” he said, talking out loud to himself. “You have no place to go. It’s okay. You’re fine. You’ll figure something out.”

And another thing: Humans got _cold_ in the ocean. John could feel the chill set in his bones and a shiver racked his body. He was going to die out here, and he never even could set foot on land. Swimming out a little more, he reached shallower water.

He tried to stand upright to walk towards land, but his legs wobbled and he ended up falling back. ”Fuck,” he muttered. This was harder than he thought.

He tried to again, but his legs gave out from beneath him once more, landing him back into the water. He never thought he’d hate water before.

And then he saw a boat.

It was a dingy sort of boat, made of wood and very small, with a fishing rod and a net on it. It looked poor and broken down. The man sailing it looked anything but. He had finely tailored clothes and hair tied neatly back. In other words, he looked _expensive_.

He was also coming near John.

“Um,” John said, through his chattering teeth (which he didn’t understand. Why the heck did a human’s _teeth_ chatter?). “Hi.”

“Hello,” the man said. “Are you a merperson?”

“Um,” John said again. “Yes?” he guessed, against his better judgement.

The man grinned. “I knew it!” he said delightedly. “I knew you weren’t extinct! I saw you come up from the bottom of the sea,” he explained. “And you had a tail, then. But now you don’t. Have you turned into a human?”

“Yes…” John replied hesitantly.

“Oh! Where are my manners? I’m Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier Marquis de Lafayette, but call me Lafayette.” He extended his hand. “And you are?”

“John,” John replied, taking his hand, utterly confused as to what was going on and barely processing the man's--Lafayette's--words, and he just really wanted to get out of here.

“You’re freezing!” Lafayette exclaimed. “You’re not prepared for this are you?”

“N-no,” John said, who was seriously starting to wonder if humans could ice over. 

Lafayette, using his still-held hand, hauled John up into the boat with surprising strength and gave him what he guessed was coat, which he wrapped around himself. He didn’t really know how to wear one and he didn’t care enough to figure out.

“Let’s get you to my home,” Lafayette said. “You can warm up there and I can help you get used to life on land. Is that okay?”

John nodded. “Perfect,” he answered. He was exhausted and cold and his eyes were heavy. Sensing this, Lafayette put a hand on his shoulder. “You can sleep,” he said. “I can get us home.”

John barely had time to talk before he drifted off.

*

John woke up in a panic. He couldn’t tell where he was or what he was on, but he could see that he was on a soft surface, blankets around him. He took a breath and rose unsteadily. He managed to stay upright this time, legs still wobbly. He took a step. Then another. Then another. Then--

“You’re awake!”

John gave a squeak of surprise and Lafayette caught him before he could fall again.

“I was waiting until you’d wake up,” Lafayette said. “You’re still very cold, so I was thinking a warm shower would help you.”

“A rain shower?” John asked, confused.

“Not a rain shower,” Lafayette said. “It’s a man-made thing and it, well, I’ll just show you. Come on out of the living room.”

He led John over to a little room (so this must be Lafayette’s _house_ ) and brought him inside, cold tile meeting his feet.

“I’ll leave fresh clothes in here for you to change into when you’re done,” Lafayette said. “You just turn the knob and there!”

John’s mouth dropped open. “That’s _water_!” he said in shock.

“Mm-hmm,” Lafayette said, amused.

“And it’s coming from there!” John pointed to the spout that was spraying water. “But--how!”

“As much as I’d love to explain hydraulics,” Lafayette said gently. “I’d rather you not freeze to death. Are you going to be okay now?”

“Yeah,” John said. “So I just, like...step into this thingy?”

“Bathtub,” Lafayette said.

“Bathtub,” John amended. “And...just stand in there?”

Lafayette sighed. “We have a lot to talk about,” he noted. “Just warm up in there and put on clothes and then we’ll talk.”

“Ok,” John said, still not sure why he was trusting this guy. Lafayette gave him a warm smile and left.

The hot water shocked him, but soon afterwards it was blissfully warm, and he finally gained the feeling in his fingers that he didn’t realize was lost. After spending a good five minutes trying to figure out how to shut the thing off, he found another problem.

Clothing.

He had no idea how it worked. 

He spent a good thirty minutes wrestling the clothes on (what were those long flappy things and weird holes everywhere and who had _time_ for any of this?) and when he finally had them on, he then caught sight of his reflection in the mirror.

John had to bite back a scream.

Gone were his pointed ears and his fangs, and his bright sea-green eyes were now a light brown color. It was him...but it _wasn’t_. It was so _wrong_ to see himself like this, but yet...he felt he could get used to it. One day.

He slowly made his way out the door and towards where Lafayette was, in the--what was it? Living room?--living room. Lafayette smiled at him when he entered. “You must be hungry, so I made us crepes.” He looked him over. “Your shirt’s inside out,” he noted. “But overall pretty good.”

As John fumbled to put his shirt on again, he asked, “What are crepes?”

“Delicious, that’s what they are,” Lafayette said. “Full of strawberries and chocolate and just _delicious_.”

“I’ve never had strawberries before. Or chocolate,” John noted, sitting down on a table (a much more useful table than the flat rocks that went unused underwater). 

“That's the saddest thing I've ever heard," Lafayette commented. "Here’s your plate and your fork,” he said, and John could see he was intentionally labeling everything he gave John to let him know what it was. “You hold it like this.” He took John’s hand and wrapped it around the fork, then demonstrated himself using it. “Or you could just eat it with your hands. Whatever works. But I suggest you start practicing.”

“Thank you,” John said quietly. “I don’t know what I’d do without you.”

“It’s not a problem,” Lafayette said breezily.

John ate a piece of the crepe, still unsteady with the fork, and his eyes widened. “It’s hot!” he said in surprise. 

Lafayette tilted his head. “Should it not be?” he asked.

“No, it’s just that everything underwater was raw and cold,” John said. “I suppose as a human I can’t just eat raw fish, huh?”

“Probably not,” Lafayette said with a laugh. “But how is it?” he asked eagerly.

“Very good!” John said with a smile. The taste was unfamiliar, sweet with a hint of tartness, different flavors blooming on his tongue. “I like it.”

Lafayette beamed. “Thank you! I appreciate it.”

“It’s the least I can do,” John said. “Why are you helping me, anyway?”

Lafayette’s smile faltered. “Because it’s the right thing to do,” he said, as though it were obvious. “I couldn’t just leave you there. And, besides, it gets lonely up here.” He waved a hand around his room. “Not a lot of people visit me.” He laughed softly. “They call me a ‘crazy fisherman’ because, well, I wanted to fish, but I don’t have the heart to catch anything, so I just watch the sea creatures go by. People avoid me in the markets, whisper things behind my back.” He smiled wryly. “Just because I’m not from here doesn’t mean I’m _deaf_.”

“That sucks,” John said, and _sucks_ doesn’t sum it up enough. “But how do you make money?”

“My dear John,” Lafayette said. “I haven’t told you yet? I’m practically royalty. I’m rich, living off of my parents’ money.” He gestured around the house. “This is why everything looks so nice and why my clothes look this fancy. “

“But,” John said. “But how can you _live_?” he asked. “There’s no one to talk to and the people who do only ridicule you.’

“It’s not so bad,” Lafayette responded, but his smile seemed a bit sadder now. “I manage, anyway. And besides,” he shrugged. “You’re here now.”

John smiled. “Yeah. I’m here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I forgot to update yesterday, sorry about that. There also might be some delay later on because I haven't been writing as much so the next chapter isn't finished yet.
> 
> I realize that in the letter last chapter I made the most critical mistake of writing, "My dear Laurens" instead of "My dear John" which basically would've screwed over my plot if I had kept it. It's fixed now, so just remember that John's name is John and nothing else, as he doesn't have a last name. (The reason why that was a really bad mistake will become more relevant later).


	8. Chapter 8

“So you’ll have to leave 7:00,” Lafayette murmured as John recounted his story. “That seems...strenuous.”

“I know,” John sighed. “But I can’t exactly do anything about it, can I? Do you know what I should do?”

Lafayette thought for a moment, before standing up. “Come here,” he said, beckoning John with his hand. He led John out of a door at the side of his house, bringing him out to a small dock. The worn-out boat that he had used earlier was tied up here, along with unused fishing equipment scattered around. 

“This leads right out to the ocean,” Lafayette said, walking over to the edge of the dock. John joined him, looking down at the dark water. He frowned slightly, knowing that he should’ve been able to see clearly through the water as a merperson, but as a human, well...His vision sucked. 

“You can stay at my house for as long as you want,” Lafayette continued. “And then, when sundown comes, you can easily slip into the water. At sunrise, you can come back out and into the house. I can leave a change of clothes here, a towel, anything you want.” He shrugged. “It’s not perfect, but it’s better. So?” He looked at John. “What do you say?”

John threw his arms around Lafayette in a hug, who looked shocked, then hugged him back tightly.

“Thank you,” John said. “For everything. I don’t know what I could’ve done without you.”

“It was no problem, John,” Lafayette said warmly. He pulled back, smiling at John. “When I first came here, from a kingdom much farther away, I had no one here to help me. You deserve to have at least one person on your side.”

*

To go back into the sea was refreshing. He raked a hand through his curls, letting them spring to life under the water, shaking his head and relishing the feel of the salt on his skin. Being a human was good, yes, but he needed a bit more time before he got used to it. As for now, he still called himself a merperson.

“John!” John barely had time to turn before he was tackled by someone.

“Eliza, you’re suffocating me,” he managed.

“Sorry!” Eliza gasped, pulling back. “I’m just...I’m just so happy to see you John. I didn’t know if you were dead or…”

“You scared us,” Angelica added, a hand on his shoulder. “We kept looking for you around shore and in the water, but we couldn’t find you.”

“Sorry,” John said, feeling guilty. “I was fine.”

“The spell didn’t work?” Peggy asked sympathetically. “That’s too bad. Do you think we could—”

“The spell worked,” John corrected her. “I turned into a human.”

“Turned?” Eliza asked.

“I turn into a human in the mornings and a merperson at night,” John said. 

“That sounds strenuous,” Angelica commented.

“Yeah, but,” John shrugged. “It worked.”

“So how do you like it?” Peggy questioned. “Land, I mean.”

“I haven’t seen much of it yet,” John confessed. “I’m staying with this very kind fisherman though. His name is Lafayette.”

“The allegedly crazy fisherman?” Angelica asked.

“He’s not crazy,” John defended him. “It’s just a rumor. He’s actually very lonely. I feel bad for him.”

“As long as you’re safe,” Angelica said. “But,” she added. "For the record, I still think this is a stupid idea." 

"Thanks for the love and support, Angie," John said, rolling his eyes. 

*

After reassuring his family that he was very much alive and that he was going to continue turning into a human, John had one more thing to wrap up before the sky grew too dark. 

John swam near the same rocks he and Alex met often, hoping, _praying_ that Alex would walk by.

And then, by some incredible twist of fate, he was there. Alex was humming to himself as he looked out by sea, then proceeded to make his way nimbly across the rocks. It was now dark out, and John couldn’t help but think, _Does he want a death wish or something? If he falls now, he’ll be lost in the water_.

“Alex!” he whispered and Alex jumped, nearly falling off the rocks, John guilty thinking, _oops_.

“John?” he asked, looking around panicked.

“Yeah, I’m down here.” John waved and Alex spotted him, before making his way towards John.

“Hey, John,” he said. “What are you doing here?”

“We have to change our schedules,” John said. “I can’t meet during the day, so how about around seven?”

“Seven at night?” Alex asked and John nodded in confirmation. “That’s when I stop working. I can do that. But why the change?”

“Um,” John said and Alex quickly said, “You don’t have to tell me though.”

“No, it’s just, um.” John stopped, remembering he _couldn’t_ tell Alex he was going to be on land because of the spell. “My father doesn’t want me leaving during the day.” 

“Oh, okay,” Alex said easily. “As long as I can keep seeing you.”

“Yeah,” John breathed, still quite unsure how someone like Alex would want to see someone like _him_.

“So,” Alex said, leaning down towards him. “I was wondering something.”

John arched an eyebrow. “Yeah?” 

“You said you liked the stars, didn’t you?”

“Yeah,” John replied, eyes lighting up like they always did when he talked about something he was passionate in. 

The corners of Alex’s lips twitched up and for a moment he didn’t say anything, before shaking his head and asking, “Do you know constellations?”

“Well…” John tilted his head up, trying to spot the images in the sky. “Sort of. I know _of_ them, but I could never see them.”

“Being a navigator,” Alex said. “I know quite a few.” He reached down and took John’s arm, guiding his hand so it pointed up towards the expanse of stars in the night sky;

“That bright one right there?” he said. “That’s Polaris. You can find it by locating it in Ursa Minor.”

“As beautiful as these stars look,” John murmured. “I can’t see shit. Where the fuck is Ursa Minor?”

Alex . “It’s right there,” he said, tracing a line of stars in the sky. “It looks like a ladle.”

“That would be useful if I knew what a ladle is,” John said dryly.

“It’s like a—like a—” Alex gestured meaninglessly with his hands. “Like a bowl-spoon thing you use to pick up stuff.”

“Helpful,” John deadpanned and Alex laughed again.

“Anyway,” he said. “Let’s move away from the navigational stars. If you look over there,” He pointed to a patch of dimly lit stars. “That’s Ursa Major. It’s supposed to look like a bear. You know what a bear is?”

John nodded. Maria had a picture book of animals and magical creatures he had spent ages staring at. “It does _not_ look like a bear.”

“Maybe if you squint?” Alex suggested. “Well, anyway, near it is Orion and then there’s Scorpius right over there.” 

John tilted his head. “I still can’t see it,” he admitted.

“It’s hard,” Alex agreed. “Much easier to make up your own. You see those stars?” He once again took John’s hand so it pointed over to a spot in the sky. “That kind of looks like a merperson. It could be you.” He shrugged and gave John a lopsided grin that made his heart skip a beat.

“Yeah, well then you’re the one right next to it,” John said. “So we’re together.”

Alex moved his hand so it held John’s, twining their fingers together and squeezing once. “I like that,” he said softly.

*

“So,” Lafayette said, over a breakfast of toast and eggs. “What do you want to do today?”

“Um,” John said, cutting into the egg and watching the buttery yolk spill over the toast. _Weird_. “I don’t know what to do on land.”

Lafayette tapped his fingers on the table. “We could walk around,” he suggested. “Get you used to land, what things are, you know. It’d be fun.”

John dropped his fork, grinning up at Lafayette. “Really? We could go outside today?”

“I don’t see why not,” Lafayette replied, smiling at John’s uncontained enthusiasm. “You still need to practice walking and get used to life up here. It’d be good for you.”

John looked outside, staring out at the sunlit waters visible from the kitchen window. “I can’t believe I’m finally up here,” he murmured. “It seems unreal.”

“That’s how I felt when I moved here,” Lafayette said. “But just a warning. Sometimes your dreams don’t come out the way you think they do.” There was a sadness in his eyes and John opened his mouth to say something stupidly sentimental before Lafayette noted, “You do you realize egg yolk isn’t supposed to drip onto your shirt, right?”

“Shut up,” John said.

*

“So, where are we headed?” John asked, staring down as Lafayette fussed with his shoes.

“You make a loop like that and wrap it under like so, okay?” Lafayette said as he demonstrated how to tie shoes.

“Uh huh,” John said disinterestedly. “But where are we going?”

Lafayette hopped up. “We’re going to the market. It’s up in the town center. It’s the most popular place and I can buy you whatever you want there.”

“I can’t allow you to just—” John objected but Lafayette held up a finger.

“Royalty, remember?” he reminded him. “I have more than enough money to spend.”

“Thanks, Laf,” John said with a smile.

Lafayette shrugged it off. “It’s no problem,” he said easily. “So are you ready?”

“I think so,” John said. “I just feel nervous. About going outside. It’s...it’s dumb.”

“It’s not,” Lafayette said, taking his hands. “You got me, remember? Just stay close. Don’t get lost.”

“Okay,” John said, clinging onto Lafayette for a moment more before letting go. “Okay, let’s go.”

“One more thing!” Lafayette ducked into the bathroom and emerged with a hair tie. John had saw Maria wear one, but he had never worn one himself.

Lafayette drew his hair back and tied it off with the tie neatly. “There,” he said, satisfied. “So your hair won’t get everywhere.” He stepped back and surveyed John, looking him up and down, before nodding. “We’re good to go.”

Lafayette opened the door to his home and walked out the door onto the beach with a easy confidence John felt he could never have. 

When Lafayette turned to see John still standing uncertainly in the doorway, he said, “It’s just sand, John! Come on!”

“I’ve never been on sand before with _legs_!” John called back defensively. “I was sleeping when I first even went on land.”

Lafayette huffed. “Okay, take your time,” he said. “But I’d like to leave before midnight.”

John took a deep breath and carefully stepped out, one step first, then the other. His shoes sunk into the ground. 

He started to giggle, moving his feet around. “It’s soft!” he exclaimed.

“It’s sand,” Lafayette replied. “It’s like that.”

John broke down into laughter, and Lafayette stepped forward, looking slightly alarmed. “It’s all squishy and weird, Laf!” He giggled again. “Just look at it!”

Lafayette rolled his eyes. “If you’re amazed by how _sand_ feels, I don’t even know how you’re going to survive,” he muttered. “Come on, we’ve got to get to town.”

“Okay, okay,” John said, running after Lafayette, eyes still staring down at the sand in wonder.

*

“Here we are!” Lafayette said, gesturing around the town. “It’s pretty nice, isn’t it?”

John couldn’t respond. He felt he was having a sensory overload, eyes trying to take in everything, mind trying in vain to process it.

He was standing on cobbled stone, with people milling around and talking, houses lining the streets. Lafayette calmly pulled him to the side as a group of children ran by, laughing. The scene made him wistful. The reason why hit him.

The bustling life, the laughter, the talking, it all looked like how the corals _used_ to look like, before the war. Before their lives were in danger. Before they didn’t live in fear. It made him miss home, and he glanced towards the ocean, a knot in his stomach he didn’t like.

“Are you okay?” Lafayette asked carefully. “We can go back, if this is too much for you.”

“No, I’m okay,” John said determinedly. “I’m fine. Just...a lot, you know?”

Lafayette nodded, and he beckoned to John to come deeper into the town. 

“The marketplace is just up there,” he said, pointing upwards. They followed the paved streets until the reached the center of town.

The center was, well, _lively_.

It was an open-air market, according to Lafayette, the store stalls outside where passerbys could come and look. Street performers lined the sides, entrancing audiences with music and tricks. It seemed vaguely familiar, and John didn’t know why, until he realized with a start that he had seen this scene before, in Thomas’s lair, when Thomas had conjured the image of Alex.

Head whipping around, his eyes desperately scanned the crowd for a sign of Alex, but he was nowhere to be seen.

“What is it?” Lafayette asked, craning his neck to look around.

“Nothing,” John said dismissively, feeling crushed. _Maybe later,_ he told himself hopefully. _He’ll appear later_.

“All right then,” Lafayette took John’s hand securely, which John was thankful for. He felt that if he got lost in this mess, he’d break down. “Let’s explore, shall we?”

Exploring, John thought, was fun. The two wandered down alleyways and around town, stopping at stalls and so forth. The took time to stop to eat before they were back on their feet. John’s legs were beginning to ache with every step, unused to this much walking, or, well, walking at all, but he didn’t care because he was on land.

“Should you go by John?” Lafayette asked him as they took a break to sit on a bench and watch people go by. 

“What do you mean?” John asked. 

“Well,” Lafayette shrugged. “I would think you’d like to cut off all ties to the merperson world, correct? Your name would be the first place to start.”

“Oh,” John said. “ _Oh_. That’s a good idea.” He fell silent, before asking, “So...what _should_ it be?”

Lafayette shrugged. “You could take one of my names,” he offered. “Marie-Joseph, Paul, Yves, Roch...all free. Though I do prefer to keep Gilbert.”

John frowned. “I’m good,” he decided. Skimming the town for a stroke of inspiration, his eyes landed on a far-away stall, words barely readable to _Lauren’s Potions_.

“How about Laurens?” he suggested.

Lafayette followed his gaze. “You know that there’s an apostro—” He caught himself. “That works,” he agreed. “Kind of weird, but it works.” He smiled at John. “Well, welcome to land, Laurens.”

*

The sky was darkening by the time they were done looking around.

“We have an hour left before you become a you-know-what,” Lafayette said, checking his watch. “How about we grab a bite to eat before you go?” he suggested. “I know a place around here.”

“Okay,” John said, eyes flickering nervously towards the ocean. _He’d make it back in time_. “Where are we going?”

“To a bar. It’s called _The Place to Be_. Lovely place, filled with strange folk. It’s a hit spot for sailors though, which means there’s always a story.”

“Will I...um…” John trailed off.

“FIt in?” Lafayette guessed. “Well, you’re a newcomer and you’re with ‘the crazy fisherman’, so I’ll say you’ll stand out. But you’ll be with me and I have brass knuckles in my pocket, so.”

_Not exactly reassuring_ , he thought, but followed Lafayette anyway into the bar. 

The tavern was dimly lit and raucous, people talking animatedly or yelling, and John automatically shrank back. Lafayette kept a steady hand on his back. 

“Keep going,” he murmured. “Most won’t pay attention to you. Just keep your head held high.”

John closed his eyes. Being a prince, a figure of the public eye, he knew how to act, how to put on an image of himself, how to mask his feelings. He opened his eyes carefully, following Lafayette as he led him over to a table.

They attracted looks. Most would mutter about Lafayette, saying unkind words behind his back. Lafayette didn’t look affected as he called for a waiter. But when people caught sight of John, well...that’s when the whispers really started.

“This is also a hotbed of gossip,” Lafayette said, looking around. “As long as you keep to yourself no one will—”

He was cut off as a young man deftly jumped on his table. To the calls of “Hamilton, sit down!” he cleared his throat and launched into a rant. No, a _speech_.

“Ah, the little lion strikes again,” Lafayette said amusedly, watching the man.

John didn’t— _couldn’t_ —respond, because the breath had been taken out of his lungs. 

Standing in front of him, a glass in his hand and a smile on his face was Alexander Hamilton.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I was actually debating whether for John to be called "Philip" or "Laurens" on the surface, but ultimately chose "Laurens" because I thought it'd be easier to read that way and avoid confusion. I also realize that it kinda looks like I'm doing Laf/John, but, in all honesty, it's more like Lafayette adopted John.
> 
> Thanks for all the kudos and comments so far! I really appreciate them <3
> 
> Next chapter features Alex and John meeting each other on land and a bit more explaining on how John's spell works.


	9. Chapter 9

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a really hard chapter to get out, so it kind of sounds choppy and pretty poorly written. Hopefully the next chapter will be more promising!

Alex’s eyes were bright as he rose his glass towards the ceiling of the tavern. “Is this what we stand for?” he yelled out towards the people, gesturing towards the door. “Outrageous taxes? King George III is a tyrant. He doesn’t care about our needs, only his own. Even in this small town, we keep our kingdom fed with our fishing and farming, our waters safe with our exploration, and clothing and boots made. And an increase in taxes is how he repays us?”

The usual eloquence of his words was gone, but John quickly realized it was due to the fact that he was speaking to a crowd of mainly drunks and people with limited patience. A rambling, wordy monologue wasn’t going to keep their attention. But a rallying, inspiring, energetic rant? Well, that caught their attention.

“We need to take a stand,” Alex called out. “We are not puppets of the king!”

His response was met with shouting, some in support, others in disgust. A cup was thrown at him, which he deftly dodged, and opened his mouth to say something more, but was pulled off the table.

“Come on, Alex,” a man said, tugging him away. “You’ve angered enough people.”

“Fine,” Alex said, clearly dissatisfied. “I’ll just try again tomorrow.”

“Alexander Hamilton is quite the figure, is he not?” Lafayette commented. “But that speech was certainly riveting.” 

“What is with the unfair taxing?” John asked.

Lafayette thought for a moment. “Well, the king is rather...greedy, I would say. He makes his people give much more money than necessary, and he never helps them.” His eyes widened as he looked behind John. “Looks like we have company,” he muttered.

Twisting around, John’s heart stopped, because _Alexander Hamilton_ was making his way towards John, the same man who pulled him off the table following him.

He slid into the seat besides John easily and thrust out his hand. “You’re new here, aren’t you?” he asked, eyes sliding up and down John. He felt uncomfortable under Alex’s gaze, not the warm one he was used to, but rather a judgemental one, sizing him up and down. “I’m Alexander Hamilton. Call me Alex.”

John caught Lafayette’s eye, who covetly mimed shaking hands. John took Alex’s hand somewhat gingerly and shook it. “J--ah, Laurens.”

“Laurens?” Alex quirked an eyebrow. “Strange name.”

“Came from a strange place,” John threw back, and Alex nodded, a small smile appearing on his face.

“I’m Hercules Mulligan,” the other man said. “Pleasure to meet you.”

Alex turned to Lafayette. “And you’re the cra--um, what’s your name again?”

Lafayette looked at him disdainfully. “Marie-Joseph Paul Yves Roch Gilbert du Motier _the Marquis_ de Lafayette,” he said, accenting his title. “But you may call me Lafayette.”

Alex turned back to John. “You're with this guy?”

“Yes,” John said stiffly. He had been hoping Alex was not one of the townsfolk who looked down on Lafayette, and, despite his crush on Alex, wanted to set him straight. “Lafayette has been a wonderful help getting me used to town, as he is a foreigner himself.”

Almost immediately, Alex’s expression shifted to one of excitement and wonder. “You’re an immigrant? We’re immigrants too!” He gestured to him and Hercules. “That’s so cool! It was hard to start out, wasn’t it? This town’s so small, they pick out newcomers like _that_.” He snapped his fingers. “Of course, I had Herc to help me out at first, and he landed me a job and a place to stay, and then I started writing so of course people warmed up to me, or well, most did, some still do hate me, which is stupid, because I--”

“Alex,” Hercules cut him off of his rambling. “Slow down. You’re losing them.”

Alex gave a sheepish smile. “Sorry,” he said. “Most can’t catch up to me.”

“I could,” John said simply. “I know someone who talks a mile a minute.” More like he was used to Alex’s fast-paced talking by now. “Besides,” he added. “I like quick-thinking minds.”

Alex looked at John with something akin to admiration. “Laurens, I like you a lot,” he said, flashing a grin. Holding up a finger for a waiter, he called out, “A round on me!”

Lafayette glanced at John worriedly. “Oh, I don’t know if that’s such a good idea…” he said nervously.

“It’s fine,” Alex said easily. “I’m like, not that broke. Kind of. I can afford it.”

Lafayette bit his lip. “All right,” he relented. “But my friend Laurens here cannot, how you say, hold his liquor?”

John shot Lafayette a questioning look. _Liquor?_

“Oh my god,” Lafayette muttered. “Laurens, if you get smashed tonight, it’s on you, okay?”

“Smashed?” John asked confusedly as a drink was slid in front of him.

“A glass to freedom,” Alex said, raising his glass, the other three doing the same.

“You’re so melodramatic,” Hercules said, shaking his head at Alex fondly. “It’s just taxes, man.” 

Alex frowned at him, tilting his head back to take a drink. “It _is_ important,” he insisted. “Especially in the poorer parts of town.”

John barely paid attention to the conversation, instead squinting at his drink. He cautiously raised the glass to the lips and took a drink. He gasped, immediately wincing at the burned feeling it left in his throat and all the way down to his stomach. 

“What the fuck is this?” he muttered to Lafayette, who smiled wryly.

“Mead, my friend,” Lafayette replied. “Something else, huh?”

As someone who was used to forever inhaling salty water, this glass of whatever it was was unreal and different. He took another, now cautious, sip. It was better this time, the burn easing. 

“How do you think?” Lafayette asked John quietly. 

“Not bad,” John said with a shrug. “I feel kind of lightheaded.”

“Already?” Lafayette asked in surprise. He examined John carefully. “Maybe merpeople aren’t fit to drink this sort of stuff...better stick to one cup, then.”

“So,” Alex said to John, interrupting his and Lafayette’s conversation. “Where are you from, Laurens?”

“Across the ocean,” John said vaguely. “What about you?”

“Unimportant,” Alex said dismissively. “I live here now.”

John blinked. Alex had said to _him_ that he lived in an island. He had said it casually and easily, but now...he was closed up and defensive. Did he do something wrong? Was he too much of a stranger?

John shook his head, taking another gulp of mead, letting the conversation of the group wash over him. His brain was coming more and more muddled up, as if he were part of a dream.

“Laurens,” Alex said, focusing on John. “There are reports that merpeople are around. What do you think about that?”

“They are definitely still out there,” John says at once, because, hello, his mouth seemed to have no filter. “In hiding, you know?”

Lafayette juts in. “My friend Laurens here is a bit odd with his thoughts,” he said with a nervous laugh. “Takes the unpopular side sometimes. Everyone knows merpeople don't live in these waters. And…” He paused, as though a thought had just struck him, swinging to look at Hercules. “Do you know the time?”

“Um,” Hercules checked his watch. “About 6:45? Why?”

“Shit, shit, shit, shit, _shit_ ,” Lafayette muttered, grabbing John’s arm, who stumbled unsteadily onto his feet. 

“We need to go,” Lafayette said, waving his hand. “Lots to do, places to be, you know.”

“Wait, why?” Alex asked, standing up as well. “You can stay for a little longer. Why go?”

“I’m crazy, remember?” Lafayette said, already tugging John towards the door. 

The burst out onto the street. Fewer people were out now, but the night was still young, so it wasn’t quite as empty. John could hardly control his legs, wobbling, trying desperately to stay upright.

“I have no control of my body,” he told Lafayette, vision slightly blurry. “Like...at all.”

Lafayette sighed and hefted John up so he was more or less riding on his back. “You are never drinking again,” he said as he half ran to the ocean. “That kind of stuff messes with a merperson’s body it seems. Magical beings are so _weird_.”

“Humans are so weird,” John shot back, a weak insult, but it was all he could think up.

“You, Laurens,” Lafayette told him, “are wasted. And it’s entirely my fault.” They reached Lafayette’s dock and he helped him undress, because, huh, John’s fingers weren’t working very well. “It seems you are not... _completely_ human.”

John didn’t know what to think about that. He didn’t really have _time_ to think, because he had just set foot in the water and was beginning to change back., legs slowly turning back into a tail.

The water woke him up, alerting all his senses again and everything came back in a rush. Too much of a rush, in fact, because now he low-key wanted to die.

“Ow,” he said, placing a hand on his forehead, wincing at the sharp pain. “Everything hurts.”

“Like an extreme hangover?” Lafayette suggested. 

“What’s a hangover?” John asked.

“Not important,” Lafayette said dismissively. “You seemed to be getting along with Alexander Hamilton though.” He raised his eyebrows at John.

John sighed. “I didn’t tell you about Alex yet, did I?” he asked and Lafayette shook his head.

“I met him as a merperson and fell in love with him I guess?” He winced. “God, it sounds so bad when I say it like that. But we started to talk and meet once a week and I just wanted to _be_ with him you know. I had always wanted to go to the surface and that was the tipping point.”

“The problem is,” John continued. “The spell to turn me human is anchored on Alex. And that comes with a drawback. He can’t recognize me or know that I’m a merperson. Which means I basically have to ‘win his heart’ on land. And that would be fine, but…”

“You’re only competition is you,” Lafayette finished.

“Exactly,” John said. “Everything’s a mess.”

“Well, my dear John,” Lafayette said. “Everything is going to work out, I assure you.”

“How are you so sure?” John asked.

“I’m not,” Lafayette said. “I was just hoping you wouldn’t ask that.”

*

“That was rather strange,” Alex murmured, watching as Lafayette and Laurens disappeared out the door. “Wonder where they’re heading.”

Hercules just shook his head. “I don’t know,” he said with a shrug. “I was just wondering something.”

“Yeah?” Alex prompted him 

“If that Laurens kid is so new, how did he know about the history of the merpeople? It’s not exactly current information.”

Alex chewed on his lip. “I don’t know,” he said finally. “Maybe Lafayette filled him in. Speaking of Lafayette, I don’t get why he gets such a bad rep. He’s not that bad. I kind of like him.”

“Some people say he’s royalty,” Hercules added. “That’s why he’s not concerned with making money.”

“Royalty? No way,” Alex thought for a moment, remembering his expensive clothing. “Or, well, maybe…?” He shook his head, taking a draught of his drink. “I’ll go talk to Laurens tomorrow. The _Sons of Liberty_ is always looking for new members and he seems to be looking for a job.”

“We’ll try to find him tomorrow then,” Hercules said, finishing the last of his drink. “Want to head home now?”

Alex nodded. The two headed out into the night. Darkness wasn’t falling as rapidly as it had in the winter, so it was still relatively light. Alex couldn’t help but run through what had happened.

“Does Laurens remind you of anyone?” he spoke out suddenly.

Hercules frowned. “No,” he said. “It’s not everyday you see someone who looks like him.”

“It’s just…” Alex shook his head to clear his mind. “His curls and freckles…” _Curly hair and freckles curly hair and freckles curly hair and freckles…_ ”I don’t know. It’s no one, probably.” The more he thought about it, the more certain he became. “Yeah, forget about it. I wasn’t thinking.”

Still, he couldn’t help but feel he was missing something.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> At 10:00 last night, I thought, SHIT I FORGOT TO UPDATE! I feel bad giving out a late and shorter chapter, but the good news is that I finally wrote out a story map for this fic, so I have (somewhat) of an idea where this is going to go.
> 
> There might be shorter chapters/later updates for the month of December because I have to write some fics for my sisters as gifts (one lams, one elams, so I'll post them as well). A Miraculous Ladybug fic is also going up because I recently finished it and I'm working on a Yuri on Ice story (because I've fallen deep into that trashcan and see no way of getting back up). 
> 
> So, all in all, I started too many things and want to finish all of them, so while I am definitely not putting this fic on hiatus, the updates might be late.


	10. Chapter 10

It was early in the morning when Alex set out to find Laurens again, in his mind playing back their conversation. It was brief, but he was already intrigued, wanting to know more about this stranger. He was halfway through the village when he stopped and realized he actually had no idea where Laurens was staying.

Cursing to himself, he whirled around towards the direction of the beach, hoping that Lafayette would know where he was.

The beach was mostly empty as it was around seven in the morning, seagulls scattering as he ran along the sand, grimacing slightly because he _knew_ his shoes would be filled with sand at the end of the day.

Nearing Lafayette’s house, a small little cottage right at the edge of the water (what would he do if it _flooded?_ ) Alex walked up to the door and knocked. 

There was a silence, and Alex was considering knocking again, when someone opened the door.

Laurens looked tired, but his eyes widened in shock when he saw Alex. His hair was damp, hanging loosely around his face, and it reminded Alex of someone he knew.

“Laurens!” Alex said, beaming. “I didn’t know you lived here.”

“I—yeah,” Laurens said, looking slightly confused. “What are you doing here?”

“I was wondering if you had a job,” Alex said. He hoped he wasn't intruding on Laurens, finding his face unreadable. “You could come work with us at the _Sons of Liberty_. We document sea creatures and whatnot.”

“Um…” Laurens glanced quickly behind him, then said. “I’m working with Lafayette?” He sounded somewhat doubtful. “But I appreciate the offer. I’ve never been on a ship before.”

“Never been on a ship?” Alex asked, grabbing Laurens’s wrist and dragging him out the door. “I’ll give you tour on it. You can meet the crew. It’ll be great.”

“Okay,” Laurens said, staring down at Alex’s hand in surprise, still looking confused. He turned towards the house and yelled, “Laf! I’m going out with Alex!”

Lafayette yelled back something that sounded suspiciously like, “Don’t get killed!” and Laurens nodded, turning to Alex. “Let’s go, then.” Releasing John’s wrist, Alex skipped down the beach, heading towards the docks. “Ever been to the docks, Laurens?” he asked.

Laurens shook his head, struggling a bit to walk in the sand and tie his hair back at the same time. “Never,” he replied. “I moved here pretty recently.”

“Well, as a fair warning, sailors can be…” Alex searched for the right word. “Rambunctious, I guess? Not all of them,” he amended himself. “But there are fights and arguments and people are probably going to judge you. They start rumors about everyone.”

“Even you?” Laurens asked.

“Yeah,” Alex replied. “They say I’ve been meeting this nereid at the edge of the beach. Which is, um, wrong, obviously, because I’ve never met one before.”

“Uh-huh,” Laurens said. He seemed to believe Alex, which was good, but rather have Laurens think he was visiting a nereid rather than a _merperson_. 

“The docks are over here.” When they reached the boatyard, Laurens’s jaw dropped open.

“They’re—they’re so big!” he said in wonder. “You can actually _move_ these?”

Alex laughed. “Yeah,” he said. “Pretty cool, right? We’re not sailing today, but some members of the crew are just fixing up the ship.” Bounding towards the _Sons of Liberty_ , he called over his shoulder, “Come on, I’ll give you a tour!”

Laurens following closely behind him, he walked up to the ship, walking on board, nodding at the crew members looking curiously his way.

“Who’s your friend here?” Kitty Livingston walked over, surveying Laurens. Kitty was a long-term crew member, one of the few women on board. She had many objections about the name _Sons of Liberty_ , so Washington granted her permission to name the next ship they had.

“This is Laurens,” Alex said. “He’s new around here. I thought I might give him a tour.”

“And happens to be your type,” Kitty muttered, too low for Laurens to hear. Before Alex could say anything to that, she held out her hand to Laurens, who shook it.

“Kitty Livingston,” she said. “I’m the carpenter on this ship. I do repairs, check if things are working, stuff like that. I also take the job of a medic, because these sailors are ridiculously reckless.”

“Says the girl who tried to fight a sea serpent by herself,” Alex scoffed.

“That was a long time ago,” Kitty objected.

“It was last week,” Alex said.

Kitty rolled her eyes. “Whatever,” she said. She flashed a smile at Laurens. “Nice to meet you, anyway. Shame you're stuck with this guy,” she inclined her head towards Alex. “But hope you settle in nicely here!”

“Thanks,” Laurens said with a smile as Kitty waved and resumed working.

“So...that was Kitty,” Alex said. “Let’s look around some more. I’ll introduce you to other people.”

“There’s John Church,” Alex said, pointing to a young man talking animatedly with another. “He’s the first mate. He’s talking to Francis Kinloch, a sailor.”

At the sound of his name, Francis turned and caught sight of Laurens, throwing him a wink.

Alex glared at him, before steering Laurens away.

“And I think that’s everyone here for now,” Alex said. “Let’s go—” he cut off at the sight of a young boy. “Hold on. Philip!” he called.

Philip turned, eyes lighting up, glowing an even brighter yellow.

“Mr. Hamilton!” he said in delight, running towards Alex and hugging him. Alex winced slightly at the rock-hard skin, but hugged him back anyway.

“Hey, Philip,” Alex said with a fond smile. “This is Laurens. He’s new here. Laurens, this is Philip. He’s the cabin boy.”

“Hi, Philip,” Laurens said with a smile. “And, if you don’t mind me asking, what are you?”

“A gargoyle,” Philip chirped, rocking back and forth. He had grey, rocky skin, glowing yellow eyes, small, curved horns, a tiny tail, and a smile so big, Alex didn’t even know how his face fit it. “And you’re..." He squinted at John "Human?” Alex had never seen Philip doubt someone's species.

“Yeah,” Laurens said, but he seemed a bit awkward as he said so. “I love your horns," he offered and, if it was even possible, Philip's eyes brightened more.

“Thanks!” Philip said happily. He reached up to touch them. “They’re growing bigger, I think.”

“Philip!” Kitty called. “I need your help over there.”

“Gotta go,” Philip said, practically bouncing on his feet, a little ball of uncontained energy. “I’ll see you around, Mr. Hamilton, Mr. Laurens. Bye!”

“Bye, Philip,” Alex said with a wave. “And read me some of your poetry later.”

Philip flashed him a thumbs-up before scampering to go help Kitty.

Laurens turned to Alex. “Ok, he’s adorable.”

“Right?” Alex asked. “He kind of just...popped in one day. No one knows if he has any family, where he’s from, how old he is...He brings good luck too, apparently warding off evil.”

“That’s cool,” Laurens said as they walked off the ship. “I love how many people have their own seperate jobs." He gestured with his hands, searching to find a word. "It's like a whole interconnected system." He paused, turning to look at Alex. "And you are?”

“The navigator,” Alex said. “It’s a fun job, but also really hard and really important. If I mess up, I could lead the ship to a cluster of rocks, into a storm, trapped in a cove.” He smiled, feeling a gleam of pride. “That’s why I was so honored when Washington picked me.” 

“Wow,” Laurens said. “That’s awesome.”

“What about you?” Alex asked. “What are you doing with Lafayette?”

“Um,” Laurens said awkwardly. “Fishing…? I help him around the house too. It’s...um...complicated?”

“Oh," Alex said, a little confused. "Well, I’ll take your word for it,” Alex said.

“Yeah,” Laurens replied, looking relieved to drop the topic. “Where are we going now?”

“I thought I’d treat you to grabbing some lunch. If, um, if that’s okay.”

Laurens smiled. “That’d be more than okay,” he said. 

“Perfect,” Alex said with a beam, leading him to a small cafe near the heart of the city.

He was meaning to get home after lunch and work on his writing, but he ended up staying for two hours with Laurens, talking and laughing with ease, enjoying the ease of words flowing through them.

The only other person he felt this way with...well, the other person wasn’t even _human_ , was he?

“A penny for your thoughts?” Laurens asked, a crooked smile on his face (and an oh-so familiar one at that…)

Alex shrugged. “It’s nothing,” he replied, but talking to Laurens made him realize one thing.

He wanted to see John again.

* * *

“A newcomer, huh?” John asked, raising one eyebrow. “Who is it?”

“This guy named Laurens,” Alex said. “Kind of a weird name, huh?”

“It’s not weird,” John said, oddly defensive. “I bet a _ton_ of people are named Laurens.”

“Huh,” Alex said, brushing it off as a merperson thing. “

“So,” John said. “How do you think of him?”

“I like him,” Alex said easily. “He’s a nice guy, great for conversation. I want to know more about him.” Hesitating for a moment, he took John’s hand and kissed it. “But I can’t say I like him as much as you, my dear John.”

John smiled at that, but it seemed a bit shaky. “Interesting,” he said. “He sounds like a great guy. You should say hi for him for me.” He laughed a little at that (why? It wasn’t funny) but fell into silence again.

“Is everything okay?” Alex asked. “You seem kind of...off.”

“Well,” John said. “I can’t really tell you that much. Merperson stuff.”

“Oh,” Alex said, slightly disappointed. 

“It’s, um, complicated,” John tried. “I just…” He sighed. “I feel like my mind’s all over the place, you know? Like…” He chewed his lip. “Kind of like I have to be two people at once, keep track of two identities, balance relationships, try not to get myself or my people _killed_.” He hunched over. “It’s hard,” he said. “And I feel like I’m _alone_.”

Alex reached down to take John’s hand, wishing there was a way for them to be closer. “Hey, I get it,” he said softly. “I get that too, you know. My mind’s so scattered I feel like the only way to sort things out is to write it all out. And, in the meantime, you can talk to me.”

“About what?”

“Whatever you want,” Alex said. “Just let it out.”

“Okay,” John said “So. You know turtles?”

And, at least in Alex’s mind, it seemed to be a mark of how much he loved John, because he listened to every single fact.

* * *

It was dark when Alex walked back to his home. Both he and John hadn’t expected to stay out this late, but they had begun to ramble about everything on their mind, and it wasn’t until John said, “Alex, you’re freezing and tired. Go home. You won’t be any good to me _dead_.” when Alex finally left.

Suppressing a yawn, he had to admit, he _was_ tired, and now he could kind of see where Hercules was coming from, always telling him to take a break. Hey, he was a busy man. He had things to do, places to be.

The streets were almost empty, giving them an almost eerie look, but Alex didn’t mind. He was used to being alone by now, despite how very people-oriented he was, and, well, he had been alone in the streets for more than he had liked.

Or...maybe not totally alone.

A woman was walking up the street, dressed in all red, hair dark and curly, towards him. Definitely towards him. Her eyes were fixated on him.

When she neared, he offered her a smile. “What are you doing out so late?” he asked. “Care for me to walk you home?”

She didn’t blink an eye. “Do you know someone named John?” she asked.

Alex frowned. “John? No, I don’t.” Well, other than the _merperson_ , but he _highly_ doubted she wanted to talk to him.

The woman pursed her lips. “How about someone with dark, curly hair down to here,” She gestured to her shoulder. “And freckles? About my height, I’d say and a newcomer here?”

“Well, there is a man named Laurens, who’s new here,” Alex said slowly.

“Laurens,” the woman repeated. “And where is he?”

“Who are you?” Alex asked instead, taking a step back. “What do you want with him?”

“Where is he?” the woman asked again, but this time her eyes stared straight into his soul, dark and beautiful, her voice coming out like silk. It seemed to envelop him, hazing over his mind, until all he could think was _yes, tell her everything_.

His mouth moved before he even realized it. “He lives down by the beach with a fisherman named Lafayette.” 

The woman smiled at him, and Alex could only gape at her in awe. “Thank you,” she said sweetly. “I’ll be off now. And,” she paused. “No, I don’t need you to walk me home. Home’s quite a long way from here.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Couldn't resist to add Philip because he's adorable. I also found out how to do line breaks! It looks so much better now. AND WOW 200 KUDOS THANK YOU!
> 
> Shameless self-advertising: Anyone in the Yuri!!! on Ice fandom, I have a fic [here](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8820715/chapters/20224351) if anyone's interested.


	11. Chapter 11

“Read it out again,” Lafayette said, crossing his arms. “Last time you gave me an apple instead of a tomato. How do you mix up an _apple_ with a _tomato_?”

“They’re both red and round!” John said defensively. “But okay, okay. You need sugar which is the white grainy stuff-- _not_ salt--, eggs which I can _not_ drop, and flour, which is another powder-y thing.”

“Right,” Lafayette said with a nod. “Just ask around at the food stalls, they’ll know what you mean. So. Ready to go?”

“Ready,” John said, tying his hair up. “Bye!”

“Bye!” Lafayette said. “And don’t you dare get a tomato!”

John stepped out of Lafayette’s house and into sand. He was used to the feeling by now, so he didn’t stop to marvel it beneath his feet, instead setting off for the marketplace.

It was busy, even now, at eight in the morning, as John fingered the gold coins Lafayette had gave him. _Don’t let people see how much money you have_ , Lafayette had told him. _You’re bound to get pickpocketed_.

John didn’t really know what pickpocketing was (what, someone picks up your pockets? How?) but guessed it wasn’t all too good, so he slipped his coins into his pockets and kept walking.

After much searching, John finally found flour (It was really heavy), eggs (he was careful not to break them as he slipped them into his bag) and was about to pay for sugar.

“How are you today?” the storekeeper asked, as they handed John the sugar for gold coins. “The newcomer, right?”

“That’s me,” John replied. “News travels quickly, huh?”

“Mmm,” the storekeeper responded. “I overheard that Alexander Hamilton talking about you. Some guy, huh?”

“Some guy,” John agreed, because that was possibly the best explanation of Alex he’d ever heard.

“I’ll give you a bit of a warning though,” the storekeeper continued. “I heard that there’s a siren roaming these parts. She apparently visited that crazy fisherman in search of someone named...John? Or perhaps it Laurens. Maybe a fellow named John Laurens? I’m not sure.”

“John,” John said carefully. 

“Yeah,” the storekeeper replied. “I’d keep an eye out, if I were you. Those sirens are dangerous things. Maybe tell a John Laurens to keep an eye out too.” Their eyes widened as they looked past John’s shoulder. “That’s her,” the storekeeper muttered. “She’s walking towards you.”

John whipped around, locking eyes with a siren walking steadily towards him.

“John!” Maria yelled. “The fuck are you doing up here?”

John grabbed the sugar. “Thank you, see you later!” he said and ran.

“Oh my god, John,” Maria muttered. “I can’t believe you’re making me _chase_ you.”

He didn’t look back to see if Maria was following, instead running through the crowded marketplace, uttering quick _sorry’s_ and _excuse me’s_ before running down to the beach, going close to the shore to sprint on the firmer sand.

“Stop!” Maria’s voice called out, but it sounded...weird. Richer, more resonating. John shook his head, ignoring her call, until his legs stalled from under him and he fell.

“What the--” he asked, trying to get up, but his legs weren’t working.

“Powers of persuasion,” Maria said, walking up to John. “One of the perks of a siren.” She offered him her hand. “It doesn’t last very long, it’s probably worn off by now.”

He took her hand, standing up and brushing sand off his pants. “I’m not going to bother running again,” John said. “So, um, what do you need, Maria?”

Maria fixed him with an unimpressed stare, arms crossed. “What I _need_ ,” she said iciily. “Is to know why you’re up here. On the surface. Where I specifically told you not to go.”

“Thomas turned me into a human for part of the day,” John said. “And look! I’m totally fine right now.”

“Do you know how scared I was when I found out?” Maria asked, voice growing. “I didn’t know if you knew how to survive up here, if the spell backfired, if they found out you were a _merperson_. I mean…” She raked a hand through her hair. “You could have at least _told_ me about it!”

“I’m sorry, Maria,” John said quietly. “I really am. I just couldn’t handle someone telling me what to do.”

Maria sighed. “I’m sorry too,” she said. “I didn’t want to make you feel like you couldn’t trust me or some stupid thing like that. But, really, John?”

“What?” he asked.

“ _Laurens_? What kind of name is that?” She laughed. “Weirdest name I’ve ever heard.” 

“Both you and Peggy never let me forget,” he muttered. 

Maria laughed again. “Well, Peggy and I are _right_ ,” she shot back. Walking forward, she looked closely at his face, examining him. “Hmm,” she said. “Your eye color changed too, I see. And your fangs are gone. You look so... _human_.”

“That was the goal,” John said dryly and Maria punched him in the shoulder.

“I’m still mad at you,” she said with a scowl. “Don’t forget that.”

“I guess I deserve that,” John conceded. He beckoned Maria to follow him. “Want to stay over for lunch?” he offered. 

“That’d be nice,” Maria said. “Who’re you staying with again?”

“Lafayette,” John responded. “I probably would be on the streets without him.”

“Humans are weird, aren’t they?” Maria murmured, casting her eyes towards the town. She had a wistful sort of longing look on her face. _I’ll never belong there_. Then it was gone, and she was looking at John with an arched eyebrow. “I mean, who’d invite a random stranger to their house, huh?”

“I think it’s just Lafayette, honestly,” John said. 

“And you said you were in love with a human, didn’t you?” Maria asked. “Who’s that?”

“His name is Alexander Hamilton,” John said. “He has these gorgeous dark brown eyes and dark hair tied back and he’s--”

“Hold on,” Maria said, holding up her hand. “Is he, like, ridiculously short?”

“Kind of?” John guessed.

“Oops,” Maria said. “I may have seduced him to get information.”

“I don’t want to know,” John muttered, leading her to Lafayette’s house, fishing out his key and unlocking the door. “Laf!” he called, opening the door. “I’ve have a guest!”

Lafayette emerged from the kitchen, a smile on his face as he picked up Maria’s hand and kissed it. “And who is this lovely lady?”

“Maria,” Maria replied. “And you are Lafayette?” She peered at him, scrutinizing his appearance before snapping her fingers. “I know who you are!” she said suddenly.

“You do?” Lafayette blinked. “I haven’t seen you before.”

“I’ve stolen from you. I mean, you’re rich, you’ve got great stuff. You probably didn’t remember because usually after I use my powers on someone, they’re so disoriented they can’t remember a thing,” she explained.

Lafayette’s mouth hung open, so John quickly intervened. “She’s a siren,” he said. “She sells human items to ocean beings.”

“Always wondered where my watch went,” Lafayette muttered.

“It’s in good hands,” Maria reassured him. “I sold it to a nix.”

“This is the weirdest conversation in the world,” John said, handing the groceries to Lafayette. “How was your fishing trip?”

“Wonderful and completely unproductive as usual,” Lafayette replied, looking a bit relieved to be talking about a more comfortable topic. “I helped a selkie who was caught in a fishing net, the poor thing. She’s all right now. I doubt she’ll be coming back towards the shore any time soon.”

“Anyway!” Lafayette clapped his hands. “Lunch?”

“Please,” John said. “I’m starving.”

They sat down on Lafayette’s small table, each grabbing a sandwich in the middle. John bit down at it, looking at Lafayette questioningly for the unfamiliar taste.

“Smoked salmon,” Lafayette provided. “Expensive, but very good.”

Maria examined her sandwich carefully, as if almost unsure what to do with it, before taking a bite, eyes widening.

“Like it?” Lafayette asked with a smile.

Maria nodded. “I--um.” She looked awkward. “I haven’t had actual food-- _good_ food--in ages. It’s been...eighty years perhaps? But enough about me,” she said quickly. “I was wondering, John. _How_ are you human, exactly?”

“Well,” John said. “I turn into a human at day and a merperson at night, essentially.”

“So you change daily,” Maria murmured. “John, that’s not _healthy_. You’re constantly turning into something unnatural to what you really are. It’s going to strain your body.” She set her sandwich down. “If this continues...John, you could _die_.”

Lafayette stared straight at John, shocked and horrified, Maria looking as if someone had just struck her down with a sword.

John took another bite of his sandwich. “I knew the risks,” he said evenly. “I still do.”

“But why?” Maria said, looking around helplessly. “ _Why_? I don’t understand!’’

John stared out the window, looking out onto the ocean. “Because,” He gave a soft smile. “There’s not much to _life_ down there for me, is there?’

* * *

It was early out when Hercules and Alex walked along the beach, wind whipping through Alex’s hair, tearing into his clothes. 

“Apparently a selkie was spotted close to shore,” Alex remarked to Hercules as they walked. “I hope she’s doing all right. Selkies are strange things, huh?”

“Don’t let Mrs. Washington hear you say that,” Hercules said with a laugh. “But, yeah, I don’t quite understand them either.”

Alex sighed. “I don’t understand many species, come to think of it,” he commented. _And especially not merpeople_.

He was shaken out of his thoughts at the sight of two other people walking towards them on the beach.

Hercules squinted. “That’s Lafayette isn’t it? And Laurens?” He called out, waving his hand. “Hey! Lafayette!”

Lafayette caught Hercules’ eye and grinned, waving.

“Laurens,” Alex said, name rolling easily off his tongue as the two came closer. “Didn’t expect to see you out here!”

Laurens shrugged. “It’s nice out, isn’t it?” he asked. “Laf said that coming here early is always the best.”

“He’s right,” Hercules chimed in. “There’s hardly anyone around.”

Lafayette beamed. “He gets me,” he noted. “And, besides, it looks so pretty with the rising sun.” Sighing happily, he turned towards the ocean.

In the morning light, the ocean looked as beautiful as always, waves, rolling towards the shore. It was tranquil, Alex taking in a breath, closing his eyes and relaxing.

“This is boring,” Alex declared after a few seconds. “I dare you all to jump in.”

“I was waiting for someone to ask,” Lafayette said. “Come on, J--Laurens.” Alex raised his eyebrows questioningly at that, but neither seemed to acknowledge him.

Alex darted into the water, gritting his teeth at the shock of cold. It was painful, but he continued to walk further into the waves.

“It’s cold!” Laurens said in shock, staring down at his feet.

“‘Course it’s cold,” Hercules said. “We’re not in the tropics, are we?”

“No, no, of course,” Laurens said. “It’s just...surprising that’s all. I’m not used to…” he trailed off, a somewhat sad look on his face.

Lafayette bent close to him, whispering something in his ear, and Laurens nodded, straightening. “Anyway,” he said. “How far do you think you can go?” He shot a shit-eating grin towards Alex’s direction.

Alex’s heart skipped a beat. _Huh. Weird._

“Farther than you,” Alex shot back. 

“Really?” Laurens cocked his head. “Let’s see about that.” He grabbed Alex’s hand, dragging him further into the ocean.

Alex squeaked as the water reached past his knees, gripping onto Laurens’ arm. “If I drown, I’ll kill you.”

Laurens laughed, head tilting back. Alex couldn’t help but stare. “You’re not going to drown,” he said affectionately. “See over there?” He pointed to a spot in the ocean, somewhat far away. 

“No,” Alex said. “What?”

“That’s a nereid gathering,” Laurens said. “The water’s glowing. It’s faint, but it’s there. Nereids give off a low light, but when there’s many of them, it’s pretty prominent to see. They protect humans in the sea. They won’t let us drown.”

Alex shook his head. “How the heck do you know this stuff?” he asked.

Laurens shrugged. “I know people,” he said vaguely.

“Seriously,” Alex said. “You just seem to, I don’t know, _know_ things about the ocean.”

Laurens smiled. “Well, I love it. The way the moon shines on the surface, the crash of the waves...it’s kind of like my home, I guess. I know it like the back of my hand.” 

“Huh,” Alex said. “Grew up on the beach then, right?”

Laurens laughed again, though Alex couldn’t find anything funny about the statement. “Let’s put it that way,” Laurens said. 

Alex opened his mouth to ask another question, because _seriously_ who was this guy? but Laurens looked down and said, “My feet are getting numb. Want to head back?”

Alex nodded. “Yeah. I think I lost feeling in them.”

“Race you!” Laurens yelled, turning towards the shore and running back to where Lafayette and Hercules were, almost unnaturally quick and nimble in the water.

Alex watched him in a sort of stunned shock, reminded of another very similar person.

Falling for two people at the same time was never a good idea.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> I'm back! And with a kind of a shitty chapter. Sorry about that :/ I took a break because I was writing every day (and my hands were cramping really badly) but if you're unsatisfied with this you can read [this 10k word long lams fic I recently posted.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/8956480)


	12. Chapter 12

Lafayette tapped his fingers on the counter of Hercules’ shop. “Is my suit done yet?” he asked. 

Hercules rolled his eyes. “I told you, in a couple of days. Why do you need a _suit_ anyway? You’re a fisherman?”

“How else am I going to impress the sirens?” Lafayette scoffed. “They all know I’m a thousand times better looking than most of them.”

“As someone who's seen sirens, I can confirm that is one hundred percent true,” John chimed in, looking up from his rapid-fire conversation with Alex. The two were a match made in heaven, practically finishing each other’s sentences. Lafayette was confused about what John’s whole crush on Alex was about, but whatever he was doing was working, because Alex was so in love with him it was painful.

“Those two need to get their shit together,” Hercules muttered, practically reading his mind. “Their sexual tension is unbearable.”

Lafayette hid a laugh in his hand, shaking his head when John looked at him, puzzled.

“Hey,” Alex said suddenly. “I just remembered. King George III is hosting a ball at his castle. Really fancy, all these nobles are invited.”

“A ball?” John asked, looking up to Lafayette for help.

“It’s a dance,” Lafayette murmured. “With very fancy clothing. I’ve been to countless ones.” John nodded in thanks. Lafayette felt a sort of protection for John, being the only one who knew that he was a merperson, and felt it his duty to inform him on all things human.

“What does this have to do with us?” Hercules asked. “You know we’re not noble.”

Alex grinned. “Here’s the thing,” he said. “King George II wants to thank the entire crew of the _Sons of Liberty_. We’re all invited! And,” he added, looking towards John and Lafayette. “We can bring someone else to it.”

“That’s so kind,” Lafayette said. “But I was planning on bringing Laurens myself.”

Hercules blinked. “How are you invited?”

“I’m the marquis de Lafayette,” Lafayette said. “I’m royalty. You knew that right?” At their silence, he laughed. “Well, I am, so I’m invited purely out of honor. It’d be fun to go, I think. Most of the balls I’ve been to have been very, _very_ dry and boring. Except for when my friend Adrienne, who’s a witch, made the room zero-gravity. _That_ was very interesting.”

“Well, that was the plan, anyway,” Lafayette continued. “But since I’m a _marquis_ and bringing a _commoner_ might be a bit... _scandalous_...doesn’t it make sense for you two to go together?” Lafayette smiled charmingly, hands spread. 

John shot a look at Lafayette, looking conflicted on whether to be angry or thankful, and Lafayette’s grin spread.

Alex looked ecstatic, turning to John. “Want to come with me then?” he asked.

“Yeah,” John said. “I’ve never been to one of these balls before though,” he added meekly.

“Neither have I,” Alex said. “We can suffer through it together.”

“Okay,” John said, smiling brightly. “So it’s a date?”

Alex choked, and Lafayette realized that John had no idea what a date so he quickly intervened, saying to Hercules loudly, “So, Herc, how do you thread a needle again?”

Hercules stared at Lafayette before talking him through the process again and Lafayette resisted the urge to bang his head on the counter.

John was going to _kill_ him someday.

* * *

Alex fiddled with the cuffs of his sleeves as they waited outside of Hercule’s shop, bouncing slightly on the balls of his feet.

“I can’t wait to go,” Alex chattered, talkative as always. It was a trait most hated, but Hercules found it a constant in his life. In other words, he was one of the few who could tolerate Alex. “I hope I can meet King George III,” he added. “I have a thirty page essay on why his laws suck just in case.” He waved a stack of paper that Hercules somehow hadn’t noticed him bring. “You think he’ll listen?”

“He’ll probably cut your head off,” Hercules muttered, grabbing the papers and tossing them inside the shop. That was no exaggeration. The king was rumored to be crazy, apparently telling his kingdom that he’d “kill their friends and family” to remind them of his love.

Sometimes Hercules wondered why the heck he moved here.

“There they are!” Alex said, pointing towards Lafayette and Laurens as they walked towards them. Eyes flitting up and down Laurens, he muttered, “I swear to god Laurens needs to _stop_.”

Hercules raised his eyebrows at Alex, who whacked his arm. “Shut up,” Alex muttered. “He’s cute, okay?”

“You like him, then,” Hercules said. “You should tell him.”

“I should…” Alex muttered. Then he looked off towards the sea, and his eyes grew distant. “But…” He sighed shaking his head, throwing one last glance to the water. “It’s complicated,” he replied. Throwing on a grin, he walked towards Laurens, taking his hand and kissing it. 

“My dearest Laurens,” he drawled out and Laurens laughed. “Care ot accompany me to the lair of a monster, excuse me, King George III?”

“It would be my pleasure,” Laurens said, exaggeratedly bowing. 

Lafayette smiled at the two, then looked at Hercules, locking eyes with him, both thinking, _Get a room, you two._ “How are we getting to the castle? By boat?”

Hercules nodded. “We’re taking the _Sons of Liberty_ ,” he said as they walked towards the boatyard. “Most of the crew is going. Kitty decided against it, though.”

“Why not?” Alex asked.

“Apparently many nobles are pretty sexist,” Hercules answered, wrinkling his nose. “Because, you know, a lot of noblewomen still follow the tradition--or are forced to follow the tradition--of marrying young and having virtually no rights.”

“Another reason why this kingdom needs a rewrite,” Alex growled.

“Anyway,” Hercules continued, eyeing Alex a little warily, nervous he was going to start ranting. “Kitty wasn’t sure if she could stop herself from gutting every person she talked to, so she decided not to take the risk.”

“I need to meet this Kitty Livingston,” Lafayette said with a laugh. I have a feeling I’ll like her very much.”

They boarded the _Sons of Liberty_ , sailors getting into their positions and began to sail. Alex went to go talk to Washington and Lafayette began to flit around the ship, talking to everything and everyone. He was so likeable and Hercules couldn’t believe he had ever dissolved him to some random person at the end of the beach.

Laurens was staring off the side of the ship, eyes fixated on the waves. He looked almost melancholic and Hercules couldn’t help but wonder, not for the first time, what he was thinking.

“What’s up?” Hercules asked. “See anything interesting? Like a mermaid?” He threw the statement towards Seabury, who yelled, “I saw it! I swear I did!”

Hercules rolled his eyes at Seabury, turning his attention back towards Laurens. “He claims he saw a mermaid,” he informed Laurens. “But who believes that?”

Laurens nodded slowly, giving a weak laugh. “Yeah...who does?” He stared back down at the water and Hercules had a feeling he had just missed something very important.

“Laurens,” he said and Laurens looked up again. “Yeah?” 

“Are you...from there?” Hercules pointed down towards the water and Laurens jolted. 

“No,” Laurens said a bit too quickly. “No, not at all, what gives you the idea?”

“You don’t know how things work up here,” Hercules said slowly. “You’ve never exactly told us where you’re from. You just...showed up one day and disappear every night.”

Laurens looked as if someone had just ran him over with a dragon, so Hercules took it as a sign to continue. “So what are you? If you’re not human.”

Laurens swallowed and Hercules braced himself for an outburst, but instead he said quietly, “It’s not important. Well, actually, it is important. _Really_ important. That's exactly why I can’t tell you.” He looked Hercules in the eye. “And you can _not_ tell anyone anything. Especially not Alex.” His eyes glinted, and Hercules suddenly wondered how he could have ever mistaken him as a human because he looked so...inhuman. “I can have the entire ocean on my side in an instant and that’s not something you want to mess with.”

Hercules opened his mouth to ask who the heck Laurens even _was_ when Washington called out, “Is Burr here? I swear I saw him board.”

Alex shrugged, walking over to Washington from where he was with Lafayette. “I haven’t seen him around, sir,” he said. “Perhaps he missed the ship leave?”

“You wish, Hamilton,” a disembodied voice said and Alex jumped, eyes casting frantically around. 

A crow flew down from the crow’s nest (and Hercules couldn’t help but roll his eyes at Aaron’s pun), transforming smoothly, almost fluidly, into a human.

“I was taking some time to myself,” Aaron said, looking at Alex. “Because _someone_ wouldn’t shut up.”

Alex frowned at him. “At least I have _beliefs_ ,” he shot back. “Unlike you.”

Aaron blinked his eyes sideways in retaliation and Alex gagged.

“I hate shapeshifters,” Alex muttered and Aaron smiled, examining his fingers, which changed from nails to claws to talons.

“Who’s that?” Laurens asked.

“Aaron Burr,” Hercules replied. “He’s a shapeshifter.”

“Aaron…” Laurens muttered. “I’ve heard that name.” He snapped his fingers. “Peggy told me about him!” He looked towards Aaron. “Do you know Theo, a water sprite?”

Aaron’s face was a blank mask. “I don’t know who that is,” he said evenly. Turning around, he shifted smoothly into a crow and was off again.

Alex whistled. “What did you say to him, Laurens?” he asked. “Doesn’t take much to get him unsettled.” 

Laurens shrugged and Hercules intervened because the last thing he wanted was for the two to get into a fight with someone else (The last had been a sailor named Charles Lee--it was a long story). 

“We’re coming up towards the castle,” he announced. “Look.”

Laurens and Alex turned, eyes widening at the sight of King George III’s castle. It overlooked the ocean and was massive, bigger than any house Hercules had ever seen.

“Here we are,” Washington said, looking slightly resentfully at the castle. “And, as a reminder, please do not get into any fights. I’d rather not lose the heads of one of my sailors tonight.”

* * *

Martha wasn’t exactly... _enjoying_ herself per se. It was bad enough that she had to introduce herself as Martha Manning (because humans had two names, for some reason. She was Martha of-the-sea thank you very much) but she also had to stay in a ridiculous form as well. She frowned down at her hands, pale and with short nails. Last time she checked, her skin was blue and her fingernails were good enough to scratch someone’s eye out. Now, she was fairly sure even that tiny little gargoyle could take her out.

“Humans,” she muttered, shaking her head. Heck, the only reason she was here was to track down how many magical creatures the king had wrapped around his finger.

So far there weren’t too many. She had talked to a elf, a nymph, and a witch so far. There was a shapeshifter she didn’t like too much and that marquis had a bit of magic residue lingering around him, but overall she could say that the king wasn’t in touch with magic.

 _Thank god for that_ , she thought, staring at the obviously-mad king. _Last thing we need is a tyrant with superpowers._

She walked through the crowd, eyeing people suspiciously. She was pretty sure she had talked to all magical creatures and was set to slip out and escape back into the ocean.

And then she felt it.

A prickling in her skin, a tingling in her toes, a tug in her gut, the feeling of _magic_. She slowly turned around, trying to find where--or _who_ \--it was coming from. And then she saw him. A man, her age perhaps, with curly hair and freckles and bright eyes. He was talking to someone else who seemed unable to see what she saw.

That this man, whoever he was, was practically _drenched_ in layers of magic. It was so thick, she couldn’t understand how no one else could see it. Then again, she was always more perceptive than anyone she had met. He was either under a very strong spell or had _incredible_ power of his own. 

Martha took a breath, before she walked towards the two men. Intervening their conversation, he said, “I hate to interrupt you two, but as soon as I caught sight of you, I couldn’t take my eyes off you.” She gave a smile that she hoped was flirtatious. It could have been the creepiest thing she had ever put on her face.

The man covered in magic gave a slow blank blink. The other man bit his lip so hard she could’ve sworn it drew blood and cast his gaze away.

So maybe flirting wasn’t the best way to go with this.

She cleared her throat. “I was hoping to learn more about you,” she added. “Could we talk outside, perhaps?”

The being looked at his (probably) human counterpart who gripped his glass so tight, Martha was afraid it’d break. “You should go, Laurens,” he muttered. “Have fun.” He turned on heel and walked away.

Laurens stared after him, completely confused, and Martha thought, _Oh, honey_ , before grabbing his arm and steering him out of the ballroom.

“Where are you taking me?” Laurens asked, both bewildered and defensive at the same time, looking at her carefully. He seemed to pick up on the fact she wasn’t entirely human, another reason why he probably wasn’t human as well.

“That’s not important,” Martha replied, stepping out of the castle doors, uttering a weak excuse to the guards and steering him into the secluded gardens.

When they were alone, she spun him around so they were facing each other and demanded, “What are you?”

“Human,” he replied, not missing a beat.

“Try again,” Martha said. “I’m Martha,” she said as an afterthought, deciding to go for a nicer approach. “Listen, I’m a nixie. You can trust me.”

Laurens crossed his arms, raising his eyebrows. “Prove it,” he replied.

Martha rolled her eyes, turning swiftly into a serpent then back again into a human. “See?” she said. “I can shapeshift. Now you tell me what you are.”

Laurens was gaping at her, uttering out a single word. “Merperson.”

Martha scoffed. “Like I believe that,” she said. 

“It’s true,” Laurens said. “And it’s almost seven o’clock.”

“So?” Martha asked. 

“So I can prove it,” Laurens replied. He beckoned her to follow, leading her down onto the beach. It was high tide and the water was waist-deep. Martha walked in easily, but Laurens lingered at the shore, where he began to take off his clothes.

“Whoa,” Martha said, covering her eyes. “What the fuck are you doing?”

She couldn’t see him, but she could practically hear Laurens roll his eyes. “What, you want me to transform into a merperson with my clothes on? How uncomfortable would _that_ be?”

He nudged her, and she moved her hands, seeing that he was now standing in front of her in the water (which, of course was waist-deep, _thank god_ , holding out his clothes.

“What?” she asked and this time he _did_ roll his eyes.

“These were expensive,” he said. “Give them back to the marquis de Lafayette for me.”

“Okaaay,” Martha said. “Now what?”

Laurens smiled. “Now I become a merperson.”

Martha watched in awe as his eyes began to turn an electric green, ears becoming pointed and finlike, teeth sharpening and nails elongating, and it looked as though he was becoming shorter, but then she realized that his legs had actually turned into a tail and he was swimming.

“But how?” she breathed.

“Magic,” Laurens replied. “I turn into a human by day and a merperson by night, essentially. My real name is John.”

“Wow,” Martha murmured. “I never would’ve thought I’d see something like this. But the magic…”

“It’s the spell,” John said. “A very powerful one at that.”

“Hmm,” Martha responded, but she had a feeling that some of that magic was internal. He’d figure that out someday, though.

"So you don't work for the king?" she asked and John shook his head. 

"I work for myself," he responded. "And it's very complicated."

"Humans, right?" Martha said and he nodded in agreement. "Well, John." Martha smiled at him. "As one ocean creature to another, I wish you luck in whatever you're doing up here. And, just remember. You have magic inside you too."

John looked at her, a bit confused, before saying regretfully, “I should go,” He looked back at the castle. “I hate to leave like this, but,’ He gestured at his body. “Can’t exactly go back to shore like this.” He flashed a smile at her. “Tell Lafayette where I went.”

“And give him your clothes,” Martha said dryly. “Right.”

John simply laughed, before giving her a wave. “Hope to see you around the ocean.”

“Looking forward to it,” Martha said, watching as he swam downwards, a tail flashing once before it was gone, lost in the ocean.

Martha sighed, looking down at the mess of clothes in her arm and her soaked dress, wondering if they’d even let her back into the castle.

She probably would’ve been better off talking to that tiny gargoyle.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> eep sorry for being a day late! I wrote this in two days because I was procrastinating. I don't have any excuse this week, but I just want to say that next week I have midterms so I might not have time, on top of a project and homework.
> 
> I wanted to try an outsider pov for this chapter and the martha-john part is kind of awkward so sorry about that :/ I wanted to show their interaction anyway though, because Martha Manning deserves more loves. This isnt edited very well, so I apologize for that.
> 
> So, as always, thank you for all your comments and kudos and see you in the next chapter!


	13. Chapter 13

“You must have had fun at the ball,” Alex said suddenly as the two were walking towards a coffee shop. “I didn’t see you at all after you and Martha went outside.” He sounded bitter. John didn’t know why.

“It was okay,” John said slowly, trying to track Alex’s thought process. “I left early.”

Alex raised his eyebrows. “How did you manage to do that?”

“Well…” John said, struggling to find an excuse, because he couldn’t exactly say, _well, I actually turned into a merperson and swam back into the sea_. He settled on, “I found a ride.”

“With Martha?” Alex guessed and John shot him a cryptic look. “No. Why would you think that?” _Why are humans so weird?_

“You just seemed to like her company,” Alex replied, not meeting John’s eyes. “She was outright flirting with you, anyway.”

“Flirting?” John repeated. “I didn’t—oh. Maybe she was.” He frowned, trying to recall the conversation. Merperson courtship was so much more forward than human courtship. “I don’t see why it matters." 

"You should talk to her again," Alex said, a bitter tone still in his voice. "I'm sure you two would be a perfect couple?"

"A perfect couple?" John repeated. "I don't get it. I'm gay, remember?"

Alex’s mouth hung open. “You never told me that!” he admonished.

John blinked. “I didn’t? Oh. Um. Well. I am.”

“I’m bi!” Alex said quickly. At John’s surprised expression, he said, “Sorry. You came out so I came out and…”

John smiled, but he already guessed as much, seeing how Alex flirted with both guys and girls. “So you can see why Martha and I won’t work out,” he said jokingly.

“Yeah, I kind of miscalculated that one.” Alex laughed, pushing open the door. Grabbing John's hand, he looked around, spotting a man sipping a cup of coffee. “And there he is. Aaron Burr, sir!” he called, waving at Aaron and dragging John towards him.

Aaron was sitting with his back behind them, but his head did a 180-turn to look at Alex and John.

“That’s disgusting,” Alex said, staring at Aaron with a face akin to horror. 

Aaron shrugged, head swiveling back. “I have your coffee orders,” he said. “Let’s talk.”

And by "let’s talk", of course, that meant Alex talked. He rambled on about how he wanted a “republic” or at the very least a “constitutional monarchy” and then about how deep in debt they were and how King George the III was “even worse than John Adams, that fat mother—”.

“Alexander,” Aaron said dryly when Alex finally took a breath, nudging at him to drink his cooling coffee. “You could do to talk less.”

“And smile more,” Alex said, rolling his eyes. “Yeah, yeah, I know. But Laurens was listening. Right, Laurens?”

John jolted up from where he was sitting, just now tuning into the conversation. “What?” he asked.

Alex turned to him with a hurt expression on his face. “You weren’t listening?” he asked. “I was talking about my plan for a new national bank.”

“Oh,” John said, sharing a pained look with Aaron. No one cared about Alex’s so-called “debt plan”, especially not John, who didn’t know politics outside the ocean.

“It’s not like it’s going to help,” Aaron said. “No one will listen to you. You’re a commoner from a tiny village.”

Alex set his jaw. “I’m going to change the world someday,” he said determinedly. ‘Just you wait.”

John loved that about Alex, how he was so passionate, so ambitious, so sure of himself that he could get _anything_ done. Aaron was the exact opposite. He waited for things to come his way, shape shifting as the world around him changed.

Alex stood up, downing his coffee in one. “I have to go and file papers for Washington,” he said.

“Still his secretary?” Aaron asked and Alex frowned.

“I’m not his secretary,” Alex objected. “I just write down things for him.”

“He’s his secretary,” Aaron said to John once Alex had left. “Alex’s just too proud to admit it.”

“I thought he was navigator,” John said, recalling their past conversation.

“He is, but Washington recently asked him to start recording, organizing, and sending out files of all the sea creatures we encounter,” Aaron explained. “The _Sons of Liberty_ is running low on crew members. Lee left recently, along with others.”

Aaron finished off his coffee and stood up, taking John’s cup and throwing them both away. “Walk with me,” he said. “I want to talk to you.”

“Um, okay,” John said, a little apprehensive. He didn’t know Aaron too well and found him hard to read. He guessed it had something to do with him being a shapeshifter, but the sheer lack of emotion from him simply unsettled John.

“You know about Theodosia,” Aaron said, as they were walking through the marketplace. “How?”

John glanced nervously around at the people. “Um…”

“They won’t hear us,” Aaron reassured him. “The people here are too caught up in their own business.”

“Okay,” John said, but lowered his voice anyway. “Nereids told me.”

“Nereids?” Aaron asked and John nodded. “But they hardly come close to shore!”

John hesitated again, but then remembered that Aaron wasn’t human, and felt somewhat comforted in the idea. “Who said I was at the shore?” he asked and Aaron’s eyes widened.

“You’re not human, are you?” he said slowly. “You’re…” He shook his head. “That’s not important. You need to promise me that you won’t tell anyone about Theodosia. No one knows she’s not human yet, and I don’t want her to face any discrimination for being a water sprite.”

“And you would know about that, huh?” John murmured.

Aaron huffed out a laugh. “Being a shapeshifter isn’t the best,” he admitted, holding up a hand and watching as his skin changed colors and shifting from reptilian to scaled to feathered. “People want me to choose one shape and stick to it, conform to something, stand up for my true form, but…” He shrugged. “I like it this way. I like being able to change whenever I want. I’ve been doing this since the moment I was born.” He leaned up against a wall, staring out at the people, before turning to John. "I need to protect Theodosia as best as I can. She's still unused to the human world and people can and will take advantage of that. I can't let her be hurt." His eyes flashed, changing from human to something much more animalistic.

“I’m a merperson,” John said softly. “And yes, we are still out there.” He looked at Aaron who was staring at him wide-eyed. “I know more than anyone how important it is to keep a secret like that.”

He held out his hand. “I won’t tell anyone about Theodosia and you don’t tell anyone about me. Especially not the _Sons of Liberty_. And especially not Alex.”

Aaron clasped his hand, shaking it firmly. “It’s a deal,” he said. “Now come on,” he beckoned John with his hand to follow. “How about you tell me your story?"

“What part of it?" John asked.

"As much as you want," he suggested. Aaron smiled. "I have a feeling our lives are not that different."

Yeah," John agreed. "Us inhumans? We need to stick together." 

* * *

“It’s nice out, isn’t it?” Alex said conversationally to John. “Now that the days are growing longer, I can see you in light.”

“Yeah,” John said with a smile. “And it’s not raining. For once, it seems.”

Alex swung his feet back and forth in the water. “It’s actually warm too. Hold on a second.” He stood up and John watched as Alex began to strip off his shirt. “What are you doing?” John asked, bewildered.

“Joining you,” Alex answered simply, tossing his shirt to the side and, oh, he was shirtless now, _fuck_ , John was screwed. “It’s a nice day out, so why not go in the water?”

“Uh, right,” John said, suddenly feeling nervous, because for some reason, some stupid reason, it felt so much more _intimate_ to have Alex near him, in the water, swimming besides him.

But, of course, before he could get his mess of a feelings sorted out, Alex jumped in.

Alex squeaked, shivering slightly. “It’s cold!” he gasped. “How are you not freezing?” “I’m a merperson, Alex,” John said sarcastically, his face still flushed with Alex being so _close_. “It’s you humans who are weird.”

“Is that your tail?” Alex asked, already moving on to the next topic. “It’s so cool!”

“You realize how weird that sounds, right?” John asked, staring at Alex as he watched his tail move back and forth in the water. “That’s like telling a human, ‘hey, I think your legs look cool.’”

Alex looked up at him. “Do _you_ think my legs look cool?”

John scoffed. “No,” he said. “They’re like little spindly sticks.”

“How dare!” Alex said with a gasp, grabbing John in an attempt to knock him underwater. John easily slithered out of his grip, swimming down and up again to appear behind Alex.

“What are you trying to do?” John said. He cuffed Alex on the head and Alex lacklusterly splashed water in John’s face. “You can’t drowna _merperson_ ,” he added with a laugh.

Alex was staring at him, all playfulness gone from his face, and John blinked. “What?”

“Nothing,” Alex said, but he had a soft smile on his face, as if he was watching something precious.

(But, no, that had to be wrong, because since when was John _precious_ to Alex?)

“So, is this what merpeople do often?” Alex asked, gesturing around him.

“Uh,” John said, deterred by the subject change. “I guess? It’s something kidsdo, though.” He smiled. “I would play like this with my younger siblings, Mary, James, and Martha. Sometimes we’d even sneak up to the surface to try and catch a glimpse of a ship.”

“And did you?” Alex asked. 

John shook his head. “We’d always get caught beforehand. My father would always be so angry, but my mother...she’d smile and say she’d do the same when she was younger.”

“Your mother?” Alex asked softly.

“Eleanor,” John said. “Or, more accurately, _Queen_ Eleanor. She was always so kind to everyone, but…” His voice caught. “She died. I don’t know how. No one knows how. One day she just vanished.”

Alex said nothing, but took John’s hand, squeezing it once, the unspoken message of: _Hey. I understand. I’m here for you._

“My dearest John,” Alex started. “I wanted to tell you—” He cut off abruptly, hand tightening around John’s, staring off at something behind him. “John?”

John turned to see a merperson staring at him in shock, or more specifically, his sister. 

“John?” Martha gasped. “Is that a human?”

“Martha, don’t tell Dad,” John said, swimming towards her. “ _Please_ , don’t tell Dad.”

“Too late,” she breathed. “James and Mary…”

“Shit,” John whispered. “I’m so fucked.” He turned to Alex. “I need to—”

“Go,” Alex said. “Will you come back?”

“I don’t know."

* * *

“I don’t believe this. _I don’t believe this_.” Henry was staring down at John and he had never felt smaller. “You promised, John! You promised that you wouldn’t tell a human about us. And what were you doing? Giving away our _secrets_? Do you know what he could do?”

“Alex isn’t like that,” John said, holding up his hands placatingly. “He wouldn’t do anything to hurt me.”

“How do you know him?” Henry demanded and John hesitated, not wanting to say anything. “John,” Henry snapped, voice cold and commanding. “Tell me.”

John swallowed. “I saved him from a shipwreck and we started meeting ever since. He doesn’t know I turn into a human, though. He doesn’t know where we live. You have to trust me,” he said pleadingly. “Please.” He looked towards his siblings for help, but they looked away, Martha meeting his eyes only once to look at him pityingly.

“He was one of the reasons you came ashore, wasn’t he?” Henry said, and he was looking at John as if he didn’t even know him. “Wasn’t he?” Henry asked again, eyes staring piercingly into John’s.

“I’m in love with him,” John spat out. “Okay? I’m gay and I’m in love with Alexander Hamilton.”

Henry looked stunned for a moment, before taking a breath. “John,” he said. “I don’t care if you like guys, I don’t care who you love, but please, for the love of all the gods out there, _don’t_ fall in love with a human. It only ends in tragedy.”

“Too late,” John said bitterly. “I don’t know what you want me to say.”

Henry sighed. “Jack,” he said. “I’m not so idiotic to say that all humans are pure evil. But I’m not so naive to say they all have good inside them. So while I can trust this...Alex, I can’t trust anyone who sees you. You need to stop going near the surface as a merperson.”

“I can’t just leave Alex!” John argued. “Dad, I—”

“Are you that selfish in thinking that you’re silly crush is more important than our entire race?” Henry demanded. 

“It’s been years, Dad,” John said. “I’ve been up there.” He pointed towards the surface. “There’s hardly a mention of merpeople. Newer people have been moving in. People who don’t know or care about the war. We can let it go!”

“I can’t risk that,” Henry said, gritting his teeth. “It’s bad enough you spend the day _frolicking_ up there, but for you as a merperson to be seen there? I can’t lose you.”

“You won’t,” John said, clenching his fists. “I promise you, you won’t. Why do you think humans are even going to hurt me anyway?”

“I can’t take the chance,” Henry said firmly. “Not since your mother—” He stopped, eyes widening.

John felt his heart drop, his siblings turning to stare at his father. He opened his mouth to speak, but found his voice cracked and rough. “My mother,” he whispered, hands shaking. “What happened to her?” 

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm participating in this auction that basically allows people to bid for fanworks and the money goes to charities. You can read more about it [here](http://fandomtrumpshate.tumblr.com/FAQ) and bid for me [here](https://fandomtrumpshateofferings.tumblr.com/post/155742070417/starlitdreamscapes-fth-contributor-page%22). It goes to a great cause and I'm willing to write pretty much any ship (lams, hamliza, mariza, jeffmads, etc). Even better, no one's bid for me yet so it'll probably be pretty easy to win lol.


	14. Chapter 14

There are times where it’s so silent it seems as though the sea itself has stopped completely, a motionless bubble of suspended time where no one dared to breathe, move, or talk.

Mary broke the silence. “I thought no one knew what happened to her,” she whispered, hands moving to cling onto Martha for support. “I thought that it was unsolved.”

“What really happened?” James asked, voice shaking. “What happened to Mom?”

John opened his mouth to say something, but realized he had no words and closed it again, instead looking straight at his father, unable to know even what to _think_.

Henry sighed, looking older and wearier than John had ever seen. “Your mother was killed by humans,” he said quietly.

Martha gave sharp intake of breath, whipping her head back and forth to look at John then her father. “No,” she said. “The war was over when she died.” She looked as if someone had murdered a dolphin in front of her.

“That’s what we all thought,” Henry continued softly. “She thought--she thought she could talk to humans. Mend the bridge between them. They thought they had killed us all by then, but she wanted to change that.”

“And then?” John asked when no one else dared to.

Henry swallowed. “Humans found her near the surface. I don’t know the exact details, but...the next day we found her body, thrown back into the sea as if it were nothing.” He almost spat out the words. 

“Who was it?” John asked, because if he knew who, then he swore to all gods that he would _burn_ them to ashes. A tear might have fallen. He didn't feel it.

“I don’t know,” Henry said quietly. 

“Why didn’t you tell us?” Martha whispered.

“I didn’t want to scare you,” Henry replied. “I had to protect you.”

“To protect us...” John muttered. His mind was a whirlwind, trying desperately to piece things together. He gritted his teeth. “Dad,” he said. “I’m still going up there. I--I _need_ to find out what happened to her.” 

“Jack…” Martha murmured, her arm around Mary and a protective hand on James. 

“I have good people on my side. _Powerful_ people,” he added. “I just need to _know_ what happened to her.”

Henry only looked at him, shaking his head. Curiosity would get the best of John one day, he knew that, but, at the moment, he really didn’t care. “I know I can’t stop you,” he said finally. “Just please be careful. This family can’t take another heartbreak.”

“I’ll be careful,” John said, and no words have ever sounded less of a promise.

* * *

“That fucking _sucks_ ,” Alex said quietly after John had told him what had happened. “If you want to talk to anyone,” he offered. "You’ve got me. I understand this sort of stuff.”

John smiled at him a little shakily. “Thanks,” he said quietly. “But I’ve accepted her death. I’m just…” He stared stormily downwards, eyes darkening. “I’m just _mad_ ,” he spat. “At my dad, at my mom, at _humans_ …” He closed his eyes. “I wish I knew earlier, you know? Maybe it would’ve changed things.”

Alex nodded. “What those humans did was disgusting,” he said. “And I know that there are still people like that in our village who would still kill merpeople. Not that many, but…” He sighed. “They’re there. And I’m not trying to justify their actions,” he added. “But there _are_ good humans.”

“I know,” John murmured, not adding, _I already met some. I know they’re good_. “But those people will always be out there, right?”

“Yeah,” Alex agreed softly. After a moment, he took John’s hand. “So what now?” he asked. “I understand if you no longer want to see me,” he continued, with a somewhat sad smile on his face. “I don’t want to put you in danger.”

“You’re worth the risk,” John said firmly and Alex’s eyes widened in surprise at that. “I _want_ to keep seeing you.”

“I don’t want to be your death wish,” Alex murmured.

John laughed, a strange sound on the quiet beach. “Alex,” he said, shaking his head. “I had a death wish the moment I set my eyes on land.” 

* * *

“Laurens, something’s off about you today,” Alex chattered as the two sat on the beach, staring out at the waves. “Everything okay?”

Laurens didn’t respond. He grabbed a rock, staring at it almost scornfully, before tossing it into the water. Then he said, “What does the _Sons of Liberty_ do exactly?”

Alex nodded. “We just monitor the sea creatures living in these water for the king. I thought you knew that.”

“That’s it?” Laurens asked. “Have you ever tried to...hurt one of the sea creatures?”

“No!” Alex admonished, shocked he even thought of the idea. “Why do you ask?”

Laurens shrugged, staring out into the sea. “I don’t know what I’m doing anymore,” he murmured. “I thought coming here would be a good idea. But now…” He sighed. “I”m starting to have second thoughts.”

“Hey, hey, hey,” Alex said, standing up and pulling Laurens up with him. “Coming here was a good idea. You met me, right?” He grinned at Laurens, elbowing him. “That’s worth something.”

Laurens laughed and Alex’s grin widened at that. “Okay, okay,” He relented. “I met you. Though is that really a plus?”

Alex feigned hurt, clasping a hand across his heart. “My dear Laurens! How dare you suggest I’m not the best thing in your life?”

“Spoiler alert, the world doesn’t revolve around you,” Laurens joked, but he slung an arm around Alex’s shoulder anyway. Laurens was like that--very affectionate and very open.

“Is everything okay though?” Alex asked. “You’ve been off all morning.”

“I just learned some things about my mom’s death. And,” he added darkly. “My faith in humanity is falling apart, I have to say.”

He said the words strangely, as if he _wasn’t_ part of humanity. Alex stared at him for a moment before shaking it off. “Let’s go do something, then,” he said, moving to take Laurens’s hand. “Where do you want to go?”

“Um,” Laurens said. “I don’t know. You choose.”

“Hmm,” Alex said, looking around. “We could go swimming.”

Laurens cast his gaze to the ocean uneasily. “No,” he decided. “I think I’ve had enough water for today.”

Alex didn’t ask what he meant. “How about we go into town?” he suggested. “We could walk into town, spend money on useless crap…” He checked his watch. “And then we could hit up a cafe and have lunch. What do you say?” He smiled at Laurens, definitely not thinking about how this sounded very much like a date.

“Sure,” Laurens said. “But you’re paying.”

Alex huffed. “Fine. But only because you’re you, okay?”

Laurens raised an eyebrow. “Because I’m me, huh?”

“I despise everything in this world except for you, my dear Laurens,” Alex said dramatically, still hand in hand with Laurens. Then he felt a tug on his heart and looked outwards to sea, wondering where John could be and adding quietly, “And a few others.”

* * *

“It’s busy today,” Alex commented. “I wonder if anything special’s going on.”

Laurens looked at him. “Should you know?” he asked. “I mean, I’m the newcomer here.”

Alex laughed. “Laurens,” he said. “I can hardly remember what day it is today. Do you think I’ll remember a festival that’s going on today?” He broke off at the sight of the marketplace, full of fresh food and treats, blue banners hanging from the stalls and children gather around a stall where they tried to catch goldfish in a pond.

“Huh,” Alex said. “Turns out there _is_ a festival today.”

Laurens turned slowly around in a circle. “What is it?” he asked in awe.

“Um,’ Alex struggled to remember the name. “The Festival of the Sea?” he guessed. “We basically honor the ocean,” He gestured towards the waves. “It provides most of our jobs, feeds us, gives this village an opportunity to thrive…we like to thank it once a year. Ships don’t sail to disturb the waters, no seafood is caught today and the beach is cleaned for trash on it’s shores.”

“And what about the sea creatures?” Laurens asked. “I’ve never heard of a festival like this before.”

Alex shrugged. “We really just try not to disturb them,” he said. “Some of the local witches cast a few spells and there are offerings that are burned to the spirits. I don’t know if that helps at all. I hope it does.”

“Well,” Alex said, turning to Laurens. “What do you want to do? Where do you want to start.”

“Um…” Laurens said, looking a bit overwhelmed. “How about we explore? There’s so much here…”

“You’re wish is my command,” Alex said dramatically and Laurens elbowed him for it. “Come on,” he said. “Let’s go.”

They flitted around the marketplace, listening to people perform speeches about the festival (and Alex would correct them on their grammar until Laurens said _shut up, Alex, not everyone is as smart as you_ ). They stopped to watch a witch perform a spell, wisps of magic curling around her. 

They paused at one of the stalls were children were catching goldfish and Laurens frowned down at the fish, staring at their metallic scales. “Where are these even from?” he asked.

“They’re not native here,’ Alex said. “Their scales aren’t solid gold, though, so they aren’t very expensive. Some have magical properties.”

“Huh,” Laurens said as they walked away. “I thought that selling fish would’ve gone against what the festival’s about.”

“Well,” Alex said. “Marketing’s marketing. Some humans are so greedy they don’t really care about anything other than money.”

“ _Humans_ ,” Laurens said, before grabbing his wrist and dragging him to somewhere else. 

Alex smiled, watching as Laurens spun in a circle, staring in almost child-like awe at the festival. There was something beautiful about him, in the sunlight in his hair, the warmth of his eyes, and the smile on his face and here Alex was, able to only watch him.

Helpless.

* * *

The two had just finished lunch when Alex caught sight of a member of the _Sons of Liberty_. He darted forward, reaching over to tap on his shoulder.

“Aaron? What are you doing with Philip?”

“Stopping him from murdering Seabury,” Aaron answered, turning around and looking down at the small gargoyle. “He’s wandering around the marketplace.”

“I wasn’t going to murder him,” Philip objected. “I was just maybe going to gut him.”

“Philip!” Alex gasped. 

“He’s fine,” Aaron said, giving Alex a little shrug like, _monsters will be monsters_. “Seabury was just talking about how non-humans don’t belong.” He curled his lip. “Some of it was passive-aggressively directed at me.”

“Bullshit,” Laurens spat and Alex looked at him, surprised, at his anger. “We-- _they_ belong here just as any other human. It’s disgusting he could think that.”

“I’m with you,” Alex agreed. “But I don’t see what we could do.”

Laurens’ hand curled into a fist, and Aaron reached out to touch his shoulder. “Don’t do anything,” he warned. “Don’t get yourself caught.” Something passed between them, something Philip and Alex didn’t understand, and Laurens sighed, nodded. “Okay,” he sighed. “I won’t do anything reckless.”

“You too, Alexander,” Aaron said, nodding at Alex. “The last thing you want is for Washington to find out. It was bad enough when he read the _Sailor Refuted_.”

“He agreed with me,” Alex pointed out. 

“He still has to keep his crew together,” Aaron countered. “He’s not going to choose the right view over the loyalty of his sailors.”

“Hmm,” Alex said, mouth set in a line.

“I thought you inhumans had left,” A voice Alex recognized as Seabury filtered through their conversation.

“Great,” Aaron said, rolling his eyes. “He’s here.”

Seabury turned to Aaron, a look of pure hatred evident in his face. “A shapeshifter,” he sneered. “They’re vile things,” he addressed to Laurens. “Don’t meddle with them.” Turning back to Aaron, he said, “Stick with one shape, why don’t you.”

Aaron blinked at him, once, twice, before unhinging his jaw, revealing massive fangs. “I could kill you now, you know.” He closed his mouth, almost instantaneously melting back into a normal human. “But I won’t.” Alex and Seabury looked disgusted, while Laurens and Philip looked unaffected. 

“And you! A gargoyle. Your heart is of rock. You bring bad luck to our town.”

“Gargoyles bring good luck!” Alex defended Philip. “He wouldn’t hurt a fly!”

“He’s a monster,” Seabury spat.

Philip looked confused. “I already know I’m a monster,” he said, tilting his head. “I don’t understand.”

“Why do _you_ stand up to them?” Seabury said to Alex, and the look of hatred was remarkable. _The Sailor Refuted_ must have really set him off. “Not that your opinion matters, anyway. You’re just a bastard orphan from a forgotten island.”

Alex rolled his eyes. “Yeah, I know I’m a bastard orphan from a forgotten island,” he replied. "And I'd rather still be on that island if it meant not having to put up with your shit.”

“Laurens,” Seabury said, and Alex glared daggers at him when he turned his gaze to Laurens. “What about you? What do you say about these _inhumans_ coming to _our_ island.”

Laurens’s eye twitched and his lip curled, looking over Seabury in disdain. “Be thankful I’m human,” he said quietly, staring at Seabury in the eyes. “If only because I have no way of making you regret every word that came out of your mouth.” 

“Come on, Alex,” he said, turning to leave. “Let’s go head down to the beach. I miss the ocean already.”

Alex exchanged a look with Aaron, who’s blank face betrayed nothing, then turned to follow Laurens, pausing only when he caught Seabury’s eye.

They probably were thinking the same thing, for once in their lives.

Laurens, in that very moment, didn’t seem quite...human.

* * *

“Alex! Laurens!” Lafayette smiled as he joined them on the beach with Hercules. “You’re just in time!”

“Just in time for what?” Alex asked.

“The sea is accepting offerings,” Lafayette said with a wide smile. He pressed gold coins into their hands. “Any token will do. It’s a kind way to show our thanks and in turn will bring good fortune to us and sea creatures.”

“What’s he talking about?” Alex turned to Hercules for answers. Hercules only shrugged.

“I have no idea,” he answered. “Laf, what are you doing?”

Lafayette handed him a gold coin. “The sea is accepting offerings,” he repeated. “I’ve been doing this since I was a child and, well, the gods have been kind to me so far, haven’t they?”

“Sure,” Hercules responded.

“This is why people think I’m crazy,” Lafayette sighed, tossing the gold coin into the water. Alex stared as it shimmered in the light, before dissolving into the sea.

Alex pointed at the now-gone coin, open-mouthed. “It--it just--”

“See?” Lafayette said, pleased with himself. “Not crazy! They _do_ accept my offerings!”

Laurens’s gaze was slightly unfocused and he smiled softly, looking at Lafayette. “Thanks, Laf,” he murmured.

Lafayette looked surprised for a moment, before his eyes flickered back from the sea to Laurens and he nodded in understanding. “It’s not a problem,” he replied. “Some of us still do care about the sea.”

Hercules and Alex exchanged a glance, thinking _what the heck was that?_ before tossing the coins into the ocean themselves, watching as they disappeared in the ocean.

Alex stared at the ocean once more, wondering what to do, when a drop of cold water hit his forehead. He squinted, staring up at the sky.

“It’s raining,” Laurens said obviously, hand upturned to catch raindrops. 

Alex stared up at the rain. “I hope it doesn’t storm,” he said. “The last thing I want is thunder and lightning. Or a hurricane.”

Laurens shot a glance at him. “Are you okay in this?” he asked. 

“I’m fine,” Alex said, part of him wondering, _how did you know I was scared of hurricanes?_ “It’s really hurricanes I hate. Everything else is just annoying. I mean,” he shrugged. “You get used to rain if you’re out at sea often.”

“Oh,” Laurens said. “Well, let’s get inside anyway.” He motioned for Alex to follow Hercules and Lafayette as they headed in the direction of Lafayette’s house. As they walked, Laurens took Alex’s hand. 

Ales frowned at him. “I told you, I’m okay,” he said, annoyed. “I’m fine with rain.”

“I know,” Laurens said with a toothy smile. “Maybe I just wanted to hold your hand.”

“Oh,” Alex said softly, looking at Laurens and wondering if he should say something, but, before he could, the rain started to come down faster, cold water soaking into their clothing, and Laurens dropped Alex’s hand so the two could run faster to the safety of Lafayette’s home.

At the doorway, Alex paused, staring out at the sea, hoping that John was somewhere out there, safe, and nowhere near land. He sighed, ducking into the house. He was probably fine.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> no i wont kill john if you were wondering
> 
> Sorry for the wait! I took a break because of midterms, but I should be on to my weekly update schedule from now on. also the storyline with john's mom will play a more important role and a role that I didnt even plan to have so aaah now i need to rewrite my plot map. Next chapter includes the schuyler sisters! It's been too long without writing them.


	15. Chapter 15

“I’m such a mess,” John muttered, perched on a rock, staring at the ocean. He liked being like this, where his toes touched the water, feeling as though he was connected to both land and sea. “What am I even _doing_ out here?” he muttered, threading a hand through his hair.

“Talking to yourself, evidently,” a voice muttered and John whipped his head around to see all three nereid sisters lounging near him.

“Angelica,” John said, rolling his eyes. “What are you doing here?”

“Well,” Angelica said, drawing out the word. “We haven’t really been with you on land yet…”

“And we haven’t seen you in a while…” Peggy added.

“So we want to catch up,” Eliza finished.

John laughed, swinging his feet back and forth in the water. “Sure,” he said. “How’s it been?”

“We’ve been talking with Maria a lot lately,” Angelica replied. “Sirens sure are _strange_.”

“Mmm, yeah,” Peggy agreed. “Like, how many humans do they eat?”

“Forgot Maria ate humans,” John said absentmindedly. “I feel as though I should talk to her about that.”

“Anyway,” Angelica said. “Things are going pretty well. Same old, same old. What about you?”

“Yeah,” Eliza said, looking at him. “Are you having any luck with...with Alex? Is that his name?”

John nodded. “Alexander Hamilton. Yeah, that’s him.” He sighed. “Why I came up here in the first place was to finally be with him, you know? And I _am_ with him, but…how is this going to work out? If he loves me, then I’ll stay on land forever but I can’t keep disappearing into the ocean every night. It doesn’t make sense. I haven’t thought this through properly. At all.”

“Then forget Alex,” Peggy said easily with a shrug, as they left the beach, following the path that led into town. “You came out here to explore, right? To see how it was like on land? Enjoy yourself while the magic lasts.”

John slowly nodded, thinking it over. “I guess you’re right,” he said finally.

“‘Course she’s right,” Angelica said with a smile. “Who’d waste their life over some guy?" 

“I’ve learned so much up here too,” John added. “Did you know you're named after a drink?” He asked Peggy. “The margarita?”

Peggy held up her hand. “Bitch, the margarita was named after _me_.”

“Oh, of course.” He rolled his eyes, shaking his head at Peggy. 

“So no regrets?” Eliza asked. “At all?”

“No,” John said softly. “No regrets.”

“Good,” Eliza said sincerely. “The last thing I want is for you to wan to take back a spell."

"No," John said softly. "I don't regret a thing." 

After talking for a few minutes, John looked down at his watch, noting it was late. “Well,” he said, stretching. “I’ve got to head back to Lafayette’s house. I have...an hour until I change back. I’ll talk to you more tomorrow,” he promised, rising and waving. “Bye!”

“Bye!” the three called back. Once John had left, Peggy turned to them with what could only be described as a sinister smile on her face. “You thinking what I’m thinking?”

Eliza and Angelica exchanged a look, before adopting similar smiles and nodding. “How long has it been?” Eliza asked. “A few years? Not very long, right?”

Angelica shook her head. “Not long at all,” she said. “I doubt much has changed up there. Let’s go.” She rose, walking towards the beach and stepping onto sand. It was always strange, in her opinion, to feel solid ground beneath her feet. After all, nereids were children of the sea—they would always belong in the ocean. But, drastic times called for drastic matters.

And, in this case, drastic times included finding out who the heck John was head over heels with. 

“Land,” Eliza breathed, walking onto the beach. “Always so strange.”

Peggy did a twirl, her skirt already dry (why? Magic, of course). “Where do we start? How can we find, um…”

“Alexander Hamilton,” Angelica supplied. “Sounds like a nice enough name. Names hold power, you know.”

“Not for humans,” Peggy scoffed. “Non-magic creatures, thinking they’re better than us...I’m surprised the gods have yet to kill that race.”

“Racism goes two ways,” Eliza reminded her, whacking Peggy lightly on the head. “Don’t expect humans to respect you if you can’t respect them either.”

“Ah, lighten up on her, Eliza,” Angelica said dismissively. “You expect us to take mortals seriously? We’re the closest thing this place has to gods.”

“Well _I_ think,” Eliza said, as they walked into town. “That you two have a superiority complex. Come on. Let’s find this Alex and see whether or not John’s wasting his time up here.”

“Hmm,” Angelica said, scanning the crowd. “Who should we ask?” 

“I don’t know,” Eliza replied. “It’s not a very big town, is it? Everyone probably knows everyone.”

“Peggy what do you thi—Peggy?” Angelica spotted her sister talking with some children and dragged her away before she could chatter their ears off. “What exactly are you doing?” she hissed.

“They wanted to know who I was!” Peggy protested. “I was just talking!”

Angelica was about to say something when she nearly ran into a man. She backed up, uttering a quick apology, looking the human over. He was tall, practically towering over him.

“Sorry,” she said again. “Do you know Alexander Hamilton?”

“Alex?” the human asked. “I work with him. Why?”

“Um,” Angelica said. “Well, I’m Angelica and this is Peggy and Eliza and we needed to talk to him about…” She looked at her sisters, silently asking for backup.

“About his work!” Eliza chimed in. “We’ve heard about him in the papers?” she guessed.

The man nodded. “About his writing. Yeah, Alex loves to talk about that. I’m Hercules. Just follow me.”

Angelica smiled in thanks and followed him through the village. 

“They’re very welcoming here,” Eliza whispered. “Not at all like last time.”

“Last time we were in the middle of war,” Angelica reminded her. “Times change. And, besides, he thinks we’re human. We look human enough.” Nereids could pass as human if one didn’t look closely. The three of them had human skin and hair colors, but their eyes could only be described as “oddly bright” and there was something in the way they moved that seemed ethereal. Beautiful. Godlike.

“This is where Alex lives,” Hercules said, gesturing to what seemed like a tailor shop. “I do too, on that matter. Anyway, he’s in there, see?” He pointed through the window to see a man furiously scribbling away in a notebook. “The store’s closed right now, but he’ll talk if you say why.”

“Thank you again for all your help,” Eliza said, smiling warmly and Hercules smiled back. “No problem.” He left, walking off towards the heart of the village again. Where he was going, Angelica didn’t know or care.

“So,” Peggy said. “Want to see this mysterious Alex?”

“Let’s go.” Angelica pushed open the door and Alex jumped, quill clattering on the paper. He cursed, then caught himself, standing up. “We’re closed—” he started, but Peggy cut him off.

“We wanted to talk to you,” she said and he frowned, walking towards them.

“Me?” he asked. “About what?” He looked at them, almost defensively.

“Let’s start with names first,” Eliza said smoothly. “I’m Eliza, and this is Angelica and Peggy.”

“A pleasure to meet you, Eliza,” Alex said, lips twitching upwards in a smile, taking her hand and kissing it gently.

Angelica raised her eyebrows, unimpressed, but Eliza turned to Angelica delightedly. “Angie! A mortal’s _flirting_ with me!”

Alex furrowed his brow at that and Angelica rolled her eyes. “Please refrain from flirting with my sister,” she muttered and Alex looked even more confused at that.

“Sister?”

“Nereids,” Angelica said, because he might as well know. “Are all related. We’re daughters of the sea, so, yes, these are my sisters, despite how are appearances differ.”

Alex’s mouth hung open and Angelica supposed that was a lot for his brain to process.

“And,” she added. “We happen to know your, ah, _relationship_ with John.”

Alex’s expression hardened. “I don’t know who that is,” he said firmly.

“The mermaid?” Peggy prompted him, completely missing his obvious lie.

“Mermaids are extinct,” Alex said immediately.

“John told us about you,” Eliza said impatiently. “You don’t have to lie to us. We just came ashore to see what you _really_ want with him.”

“Uhh…” Alex said intelligently.

“Yeah, don’t double-cross our friends,” Peggy warned him.

“If you hurt him, we’ll kill you,” Angelica continued.

“So you’re telling me,” Alex said, when they stopped talking and when he regained his ability to talk. “That three nereids, spirits of the sea, came ashore, outside their realm, to give me the _shovel talk_?”

“The what?” Eliza asked and Alex shook his head.

“Listen,” he said. “John is one of the best people I know. I swear to all gods that I’m not trying to use him or hurt him or whatever. I could never do that to him, even if I tried.”

“Hmm,” Angelica said, looking sideways at Eliza, then Peggy. “Approved?”

“Approved,” Eliza and Peggy said.

“My god,” Alex muttered. “I need to talk to John about his friends.”

“Alex, listen,” Angelica said quietly. “I don’t think you know what you’re getting into with John. You can’t get a happy ending. He’s a merperson...he belongs in the sea. And,” She lowered her eyes, before meeting Alex’s again. “He’s not human. I know he looks humanoid, but he’s not like us. He _is_ a monster, and, well…” She sighed. “Just keep that in mind, okay? What you’re doing, connecting yourself with John...it’s much deeper than you think it is.”

“Well, have a good day, Alexander Hamilton,” Angelica finished, straightening. “Come on, Peggy, Eliza. Let’s head back to the sea.”

Heading down to the water, Peggy finally asked. “What is John doing, exactly?”

Eliza sighed. “He’s trying to get Alex to fall in love with Laurens so he can be with him on land while knowing that his time with Alex will soon pass when the spell wears off _and_ knowing that Alex can never know who he truly is.”

“Yup,” Angelica said. “He’s screwed.”

* * *

John had been on land for a month or two now, and he still had no idea what a “date” was. Lafayette had said it, jokingly, as he pushed him out the door (“ _Have fun on your date with Alex!”_ ) and hadn’t bothered to explain what that meant.

So now he was at a restaurant, having Alex treat him to dinner, with that question nagging him in the back of the mind. “Alex,” he said, and Alex stopped in his rant about some guy named Adams.

“Yeah, Laurens?” he asked, with a soft smile on his face that seemed to be reserved for no one but John.

“What’s a date?” John asked, fiddling with the hem of his shirt.

“A date?” Alex repeated. “You don’t know what that is?”

John shook his head, not saying a word. Merpeople didn’t have _dates_.

“It’s like a-an outing,” Alex tried to explain. “For people who like each other. Um, romantically.” A faint blush dusted his cheeks and he didn’t meet John’s eyes.

“Oh,” John said, confused. “Lafayette said that’s what we were on.”

“That son of a bitch,” Alex muttered under his breath, before meeting John’s eyes and smiling. “It was just a joke,” he reassured John. “This isn’t a date.”

“Oh, okay,” John said, watching as Alex moved to the pay for their food. John had protested this, but Alex insisted on paying, like he always did.

The two walked outside, John’s hand sliding into Alex’s. He had begun to do that more often, liking the feeling of Alex’s hand clasped in his. Alex looked at him, surprised, as he always did when they held hands. John looked at him nervously, wondering yet again if this was something humans didn’t normally do when Alex smiled at John, like the sun itself, and everything seemed okay.

“It’s a gorgeous day out,” Alex commented, sitting on the stone wall that lined the town and staring out at the sea. After a moment’s hesitation, John joined him.

“Day?” he joked, glancing up towards the sky. “It’s getting to be evening.”

Alex elbowed John. “Same difference,” he said dismissively.

A smile crept up on John’s face. “Because Alexander Hamilton always has to be right,” he countered.

Alex shot him a grin, giving a small shrug. “You know it.”

John laughed. “I do,” he said affectionately. “Alex Hamilton,” he proclaimed. “Right 100% of the time, fights every living being he sees…”

“I do not!” Alex protested and John raised an eyebrow. “You created a new enemy today,” he reminded him. “What was it, Adams? At least you’re not going to publish—”

“An open letter pointing out all his flaws?” Alex guessed. “I’m working on the rough draft.”

“You,” John said. “Are crazy.”

“Says the guy who tried to fight Charles Lee today,” Alex said. “And failed.”

John would’ve won, if he hadn’t tried to bite and scratch the guy, forgetting he had no fangs or claws. If he was in the ocean, well then, it’d be easy to say Lee would’ve been dead. But he conceded, holding up his hands in defeat. “You got me there,” he admitted. “We’re both crazy then. A match made in heaven.”

“Yeah,” Alex murmured, turning to face John. They were closer than John had thought. “Laurens,” he said quietly. “Thanks.”

“For what?” John asked.

“Being there,” Alex replied, moving to cover John’s hand with his own. He leaned forward, foreheads bumping. “You’re the closest friend I’ve got.”

“You’re my closest friend too,” John whispered, hardly daring to raise his voice. Alex smiled slightly at that, leaning closer in, and John knew where this was going, could hardly move from his spot, frozen and waiting and unable to do anything but...his eye caught the sea and his stomach dropped.

John jolted back and Alex jumped, looking shocked at what had happened, eyes wide.

“The time,” John managed. “What is it?”

“6:50,” Alex said dumbly, eyes dropping down to his watch.

“Shit, shit, _shit_ ,” John breathed, standing up. He had _ten minutes_. “Alex, I’ve got to go.” 

“Laurens!” Alex called after him, but he was already gone, sprinting towards his feet. 

Alex groaned and dropped his head in his hands. The universe hated him, didn’t it?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> So I'm changing the update schedule to every other Friday because two multi-chap fics is a bit too much for me (4k words in one week...yikes) Hope you understand! And thank you so much for 400 kudos and all your comments!
> 
> EDIT: so i posted the chapter 3 times lol thanks for letting me know. its all fixed now :)


	16. Chapter 16

**Summary for the Chapter:**

> This was a super short chapter which I apologize for! Also, this was supposed to be a dumb fanfic but now it kind of has a plot?? I'm confused??? Not part of the plan???
> 
> On a completely unrelated note, @ all of you We'll Figure it Out readers (and idk how many that is) what fics would you like in that series? I'm not writing anything immediate and I already have a couple ideas, but I'm open to prompts. I really want to expand on that universe.

The waves seemed to be taunting John as he sprinted towards the beach, praying he had time left. A mermaid on land would be disastrous and he could dry out on the beach and have birds pick apart his corpse and…

His feet hit sand as he ran across the beach, wincing as a shell dug into his foot as he struggled through the thick sand. It was low tide, because that was his luck, and the sea seemed much too far away.

It felt like a sigh of relief to see the wet sand, darker and firm, a sign he was close to the water. He fumbled with his shirt, stripping it off as he ran, but then he could feel that tug in his stomach, a burning sensation that traveled through his arms, his eyes, his legs…

He crashed down to the sand, and, yup, he had a tail now, clothing completely ruined now (sorry, Lafayette).

“Well, shit,” he muttered, staring at the very close water. “Maybe if I…” He dug his fingers into the sand, trying to pull himself into the waves, but his upper-body strength was definitely not a match, and he gave up.

He began to feel nauseous a minute in, already too dry. He could, theoretically, make it until the tide came in, but it wouldn’t be pleasant.

“Have you ever seen a beached merperson?” John tilted his head to look up to see Peggy looking down at him.

“Can’t say I have.” That was Angelica, also surveying him mildly.

“Thank you so much for the help,” John deadpanned, fighting down a wave a nausea. His skin was starting to feel crackly and dry and he knew that, come thirty minutes, he’d start fighting for breaths.

“We’ve got you covered, John,” Eliza said, stepping out of the sea past her sisters, with a warm smile on her face. _Best of creatures and best of nereids,_ John thought, thanking the sea for Eliza’s kindness.

She held up her hand and the waves moved to her will, rising up to meet her fingertips. Her sisters helped, creating a wave of water.

“Oops,” Eliza said as the wave crashed down on the land and they were flung into the ocean. “I think we accidentally caused high tide single handedly.”

“Congratulations,” John said dryly, not even bothering to _think_ about how that was possible. “But thanks for that. I was starting to worry someone would come along and see a fucking merperson on the beach. Or worse, Alex would see me.” He shuddered. “I don’t even want to _think_ about how he’d view me after that.”

“We talked to Alex,” Angelica said. “He won’t be thinking poorly of you anytime soon.”

“Oh no,” John said warily. “What did you tell him?”

“Nothing bad!” Eliza said hurriedly. “We just threatened him with death if he hurt you!” Realizing she had made it worse, Eliza amended, “It was fine! He isn’t traumatized, unlike that other guy we talked with years back.”

“Other guy?” John asked apprehensively

“Not important,” Angelica said swiftly. “And Alex isn’t important either. Maria heard some news about the merpeople through other sirens, and, well, we wanted to ask if the news about Queen Eleanor was true.”

John nodded slowly. He wasn’t surprised that the whole sea had known about the cause of the mer-queen’s death. News had travelled quickly in the coral reefs alone. “It is true,” he said quietly. “Humans killed her.”

“And you’re okay?” Eliza asked gently. 

“Yeah. It was a long time ago.” He sighed. “It’s just a shock, I guess. Maybe a few years back, I’d be more unstable, but now...I’m okay, I think.” He still wasn’t sure on ‘okay’. He preferred not to delve so much into his feelings.

Angelica chewed her lip, but she sensed that John didn’t want to talk about it anymore. “Come on,” she said, gently whacking John on the back. “Let’s go chase some sea turtles, okay?”

* * *

Alex, John noted, looked like _shit_.

“What happened to you?” he asked, staring as Alex unceremoniously flopped down on John, burying his head on his shoulder. His heart rate spiked at that, but, then again, it always did.

“I’ve been working,” Alex said. “My hand hurts. I have permanent ink stains.”

“Where do you work?” John asked, nudging Alex until he moved off his shoulder.

“This building near our ship,” he said. “Have you ever been to our headquarters?” Alex asked John.

“Your headquarters?” John repeated.

“The _Sons of Liberty_ headquarters,” Alex explained. “It’s where we store information on the sea creatures we document and where we keep track of our expenses, letters from the king, you know. Stuff.”

John actually didn’t know, but he nodded anyway. “Can we go?” he asked.

“Yeah,” Alex said, bouncing a little on his feet. He looked a little less tired now, which John was thankful for. Alex overworked himself way too much, in his opinion, so to see some color on his pale, tired face was nice.

“So when you say headquarters,” John started as they began to walk towards the boatyard. “How big do you mean?”

“Tiny,” Alex said. “King George III is cheap, He doesn’t give us enough funding but wants us to give him twice as many files. We make do. Generally I’m the one writing reports out documenting sea creatures but there is a small team.”

“Why do you need to document sea creatures anyway?” John asked, feeling uncomfortable at the thought. He wondered how many creatures he knew the _Sons of Liberty_ had files on. It could be that selkie he talked to last week, that sea serpent he saw a few days ago, that nixie he had met yesterday.

“King George III,” Alex said, and John was starting to hate his name by now, “Wants control over everything. He wants to know every magical being, every possible threat throughout his kingdom. Being one of the few towns practically surrounded by the ocean, charting the sea is our responsibility.”

“And what about the creatures you document?” John said, still feeling icky, that not-so-right feeling in his stomach. “That’s not fair how they don’t get a say in this.”

“We don’t get a say either,” Alex pointed out. “He’s an absolute monarch. We can’t exactly defy him. And, besides, they’re monsters, aren’t they? It doesn’t affect them, as long as they don’t try to take over the kingdom.” 

John fell silent, but he couldn't help but think that, for the first time, he was thankful that merpeople were thought to be extinct.

Alex slipped his hand into John’s and he reflexively smiled at that, feeling the warm weight of Alex’s hand on his. He was probably worrying over nothing.

Alex led him into a small building with creaky wooden floors and cabinets stacked up on every corner. Desks were arranged in a neat row. Most were neat and orderly, but one had an opened inkwell and papers strewn about it.

“I think I can tell which one is yours,” John said, grinning as Alex moved to hastily close the inkwell.

“Don’t know what you’re talking about,” Alex said swiftly, but grinned back all the same.

“Hamilton?” Alex turned as the door opened, revealing a tall man, whose posture screamed _INTIMIDATION!_ “What are you doing here?”

“Showing Laurens around, sir,” Alex said, with one of his trademarked charming smiles. “He’s new-ish here and a close friend of mine.”

“George Washington,” Washington said, holding out his hand and shaking John’s firmly. “Captain of the _Sons of Liberty_.”

“Pleasure to meet you,” John said.

“Are you planning on joining us?” Washington asked and John shook his head.

“I appreciate the offer,” he said. “But I already work with Lafayette.”

He expected disdain, an expression people often used when talking about Lafayette, but Washington broke out in a smile. “Lafayette?” he repeated. “As in the marquis de Lafayette?”

John nodded and Washington’s smile grew. “He’s like a son to me,” he said. “Lafayette stayed with us when he first came over, and he’s just the nicest person ever, isn’t he?”

“He is,” John said. “He’s been the most welcoming person to me.”

“What else have you shown him, son?” Washington asked Alex.

Alex frowned slightly at the word, before answering, “Just this room. I just wanted to show him where we worked and what we do.” He pointed towards the mess of papers on his desk. “I’m working on documenting a few sirens. We don’t want them straying too close to the mainland.”

John nodded. That made sense, seeing how the risk of a siren eating a human was too high. He couldn’t help but wonder if Maria’s name was on those papers, though.

“What’s this?” John asked, nodding towards a filing cabinet.

Alex and Washington exchanged a look and Alex sighed. “That’s...not very good,” he admitted. “It’s the files of all the creatures that have died while we were on a mission. Sometimes it was by accident, sometimes in self-defense.” He shook his head. “Hurts every time we have to add a file to it.”

John opened it, looking through files, noting mainly sea monsters, but some friendly creatures to. His eyes snagged on a paper titled _Shapeshifter_ and he pulled it out.

“That was a very terrible accident,” Washington said sadly, looking at the paper. “Crew members panicked and they killed her. Burr always said that what they saw wasn’t a shapeshifter, but,” He shrugged. “What else could it be?”

John stared at the paper, hands shaking. The date, the place, the description, it all sounded like…”It wasn’t a shapeshifter,” he whispered. “It was Queen Eleanor.”

“Queen Eleanor?” Alex repeated, mind probably linking the name. “The merperson queen?”

“No,” Washington said firmly. “She wasn’t a merperson. She was a shapeshifter. She changed form from human to merperson.”

“That’s not possible,” John breathed. “She—no, she wasn’t _magic_ , she wasn’t _human_ …”

“Laurens?” Alex asked, knitting his eyebrows.

John put the paper back in the cabinet, slamming it shut. “I need to...speak with Lafayette,” he muttered.

“I’ll walk you back,” Alex said immediately, ignoring the very knowing look Washington gave him.

“Thanks,” John said with a smile, that knot of anxiety still tight in his stomach, biting his tongue as to not spill any secrets to him.

And while everything seemed like a mess, his head hurt from thinking too much, and nothing seemed to make sense anymore, at least Alex’s hand was still in his.


	17. Chapter 17

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> yikes this is all over the place i apologize in advance

Lafayette was having a good day. He had helped a dryad find her way back to her tree and chatted with a few nereids. It was a gorgeous day out, so he dropped by the Washingtons’ house to see if he could help with anything.

Martha Washington greeted him with a smile. “Hello, Gilbert,” she said with a warm smile. Something about her seemed to glow, either from happiness, or perhaps the fact that she still clung on to a few wisps of magic, despite being a human now.

“Hello, Martha,” Lafayette replied. “I was wondering if I could do anything to help. I have free time now, and we haven’t talked in a while.”

“Oh, I couldn’t possibly put work on you!” Martha said dismissively. 

“I insist,” Lafayette said. “All my friends are out anyway. I have nothing better to do.”

“Well, in that case…” Martha said. “I have a few flowers I’d like to plant out front.”

Lafayette bounced. “Of course!” he said, following her as she led him out to the gardens.

“To catch up,” Martha said as they settled on the ground in front of the gardens, pulling on gardening gloves. “I hear you have friends now, Gilbert?”

“Yes, I do,” Lafayette said. “And they call me _Lafayette_ , not _Gilbert_.”

Martha simply laughed at that. He didn’t mind her calling him that, though. It reminded him of his mother. “I was worried you were going to be an outsider forever,” she continued. “I never did like those _names_ the townsfolk called you.”

Lafayette shrugged. “I don’t mind so much. But it is nice to have friends. In fact, I took in another immigrant, Laurens.”

“Laurens,” Martha repeated. “The name sounds familiar. Is that...is that the one Alexander always talks about?”

“Probably,” Lafayette said with a laugh. “Head over heels, that one.”

“Gilbert,” Martha murmured, as she planted another flower in the garden. “Have you noticed…” She broke off, biting her lip and looking at Lafayette uncertainly.

“Noticed…?” Lafayette prompted her.

“Magic,” Martha said. “It clings to you.” She tilted her head, examining him. “I’ve been away from magic so long, to see you surrounded by it...It’s strange. Have you been around any magical creatures?”

Lafayette swallowed, thinking about John. “I’ve been around...sea creatures,” he said, choosing his words carefully. “I always am. Some are more magical than others.”

“No, this is different,” Martha said. “It’s almost as if you’re always with one.”

Lafayette shrugged helplessly. “Maybe staying on land enhanced your senses,” he suggested.

Martha sighed. “Maybe it has,” she said softly, turning her eyes towards the sea.

“Do you miss it?” Lafayette asked.

“No,” Martha replied truthfully. “I don’t. You feel so _free_ in the water, but…” She shook her head. “There’s nothing there for you. For a creature who thirsts for adventure, the ocean simply doesn’t quench it.”

Lafayette slowly nodded, thinking of John. “A selkie can easily come ashore,” he said. “But what about other sea creatures? Like...merpeople.”

“I don’t know,” Martha said. “I simply don’t know. Anyway,” she added. “It’s not your concern, luckily.”

_Oh, I wish it wasn’t_ , Lafayette thought. Aloud, he said, “What’s next? Marigolds?”

Martha nodded, giving him another warm smile, before handing him a potted plant to transfer into the garden.

“Lafayette!” Lafayette looked up to see George Washington’s towering figure stand over them. “I haven’t seen you in a while, son!”

“It’s good to see you,” Lafayette said, hopping up and hugging George. Alex was always admonished at his displays of affection to the captain, always insisting on referring to him as “sir” or “Washington” and saying how he was his boss, and that he was not on friendly terms with him.

(Little did Alex know, Washington regarded Alex as more of a son than a worker, but that wasn’t Lafayette’s news to share).

“I’m heading down to the boatyard,” George continued. “You should drop by there sometime.”

“Maybe,” Lafayette said. He didn’t bother telling him of how low the sailors thought of him. 

“I’ll see you later, then,” George said with a smile, leaning down to kiss his wife on the cheek and walking down the hill, an imposing figure despite the flowers by his feet.

After planting a few more marigolds, Lafayette stood up, checking his watch. “I should go now,” he said. “It was lovely to see you again, Martha.”

“The pleasure was all mine,” Martha returned, hugging him. “I’ll see you later!”

Lafayette waved to her as he started down the hill.

“Lafayette!” 

Lafayette turned to look at Martha.

“Stay away from magic. It’s best you don’t meddle with it.”

Lafayette nodded and turned away again, the smile melting off his face.

Well, it was a bit too late for that, wasn’t it? 

* * *

The day continued to be good as he busied himself cleaning the house and fixing some leaks in the roof. Rain was a problem, but, thankfully, his house wouldn’t flood due to a favor he had done for a nereid.

“Laf!” Lafayette jumped as the door swung open and John walked in, followed closely by Alex.

Laf sighed from where he was arranging flowers on a vase. “What did you do this time?”

“I found some things out,” John said. “Some very interesting things.” He looked at Lafayette meaningfully, and Lafayette’s brain clicked.

“So you found out what happened on that day I fished a while back?” Lafayette asked him, looking between him and Alex pointedly, hoping John would pick up on the line he threw him.

“Um...yes!” John said. “I found out about, um, that.”

“Perfect,” Lafayette said, clapping his hands, feeling quite sorry for Alex, who looked mystified. “Alex, I think Hercules wants you?” That wasn’t a lie, because he had talked to Hercules earlier that day (he was a very close friend to Lafayette by now) and he mentioned how he wanted Alex to look over some of the suits he tailored.

“He wants me to look over his clothes, doesn’t he?” Alex said, and Lafayette nodded. “I should go then.”

He turned to John. “Hey, tell me when this is all over and we can hang out again,” he tried and John nodded, distracted, and Alex looked crushed.

“Okay,” he whispered, turning around and leaving. 

“My god,” Lafayette muttered, shaking his head. Those two were going to be the death of him.

“So?” Lafayette asked John when Alex had left. “What did you find out?”

“My mother was killed by crew members of the _Sons of Liberty_ ,” John said and Lafayette’s heart dropped.

“What?” he said, shocked. 

“It was an accident,” John replied, but the words sounded hollow. “But...yeah.” He swallowed. “That’s how she died.”

“Oh, John,” Lafayette murmured, walking over to him and taking his arm. He was no stranger to grief, he was an orphan, after all, but he was still lost in comforting John, and hoped that he’d understand the gesture.

“But that wasn’t all,” John continued, giving Lafayette a little smile in thanks. “They think she’s a shapeshifter.”

Lafayette frowned. “A shapeshifter?” he repeated. “But she was obviously a merperson.”

John shrugged helplessly. “They said she turned human and then into a merperson. I don’t know how that could have happened. Maybe they saw wrong?”

“John!” Lafayette gasped, tightening his grip on his arm. “What if she’s magic?”

“Magic?” John said, looking up at Lafayette. “No...she _wasn’t_.”

“It would explain how she could turn into a human,” Lafayette insisted. “It makes sense! There are merpeople who have magic, correct? Like my friend Thomas!”

John choked. “You know Tho--” He shook his head. “That’s not important. But my mother is _not_ magic. I’m not magic, and neither are any of my siblings. And she would’ve _told_ us, wouldn’t she? She never kept anything from us. From me! I would always tell her everything, and she would tell _me_ everything and--” 

“John.” Lafayette wiped tears off his cheek gently. “Sometimes parents hide stuff from us to protect us. Your mother must have had a reason.”

“No. She’s not magic,” John hissed, batting Lafayette’s hand away and glaring at Lafayette. Lafayette flinched, stepping back, and he was reminded, very abruptly, that _right_ , John still wasn’t completely human, and _right_ , he was still a monster, and _right_ , he could still very definitely hurt him.

John must have seen fear on his face, because he looked wrecked. “I know I’m not human,” he said. “But _goddamnit_ , can’t you just _trust_ me?” He took in a breath, rubbing his eyes. It was only know that Lafayette saw the bags under his eyes and the weariness on his face, and wondered how little he had been sleeping.

“I need to think,” John muttered. “I’ll see you later.” He walked out of Lafayette’s house without looking back.

Lafayette collapsed in a chair, dropping his head into his hands.

He was having a _good day._

* * *

Alex didn’t see Laurens for the rest of the day. He felt restless, tapping his fingers on the desk and twirling his quill in his hands. There was something he was missing, he knew it, could taste it on the tip of his tongue. Something was _off_ about Laurens. He was hiding something from him and he knew it, but had no idea what it was.

It didn’t help that he had a crush on Laurens, either. Heck, it didn’t help that he had a crush on _John_ as well. But while the crush on Laurens was more of a young, ditzy crush, with John he felt...entranced. He could never take John out of his thoughts, even when with Laurens.

And, for that matter, John and Laurens were very similar. They both had curly hair and freckles. They had the same smile, the same lilt to their voice, the same sparkle in their eye. Laurens even disappeared every night at seven and he’d meet John at eight, which could only mean…

Could only mean…

Alex stabbed his quill through his paper, muttering a curse. There was a block in his mind and he couldn’t quite think of where he was going with that. He sighed, rubbing his eyes. It was probably nothing.

Hercules was looking at him worriedly. “Are you feeling alright, Alex?” 

“I think so,” Alex said.

Hercules shook his head, abandoning his own desk to walk up to him. “Not good enough,” he decided. “You should leave work early. Go take a walk.”

Alex rolled his eyes. “A great idea, except for the fact that I love my job and would hate to be fired.”

“Washington won’t fire you,” Hercules said, and Alex sighed, knowing he was right. “Come on, man. I can tell something’s bothering you.”

Alex placed down his quill. “Okay,” he agreed. “Not like I could get any decent work done anyway.”

Hercules smiled. “Thank you,” he said. “Come back before nine." 

Alex shot him a thumbs up, swinging on his jacket and packing up his things.

It was darker than he had thought. The sky was cloudless, stars beginning to peek out. He wasn’t sure where he was going at first, but then his shoes hit the sand, and he smiled slightly. Back to the beach it was.

He found himself walking among the rocks to where he’d meet John and settled on the rock, staring out at the sea.

“John,” he whispered, wondering if he could hear him.

A hand grabbed the rock and Alex squeaked, and a woman solidified from the water, smiling at him. “Looking for John?” she asked.

Alex relaxed when he recognized her. “You’re that nereid,” he said. “Angelica? Eliza? Peggy?”

“Peggy,” Peggy said. “Third try’s the charm. You want John? I’ll go get him for you.”

She moved to leave, but stopped to wink at him. “And keep it PG, okay?”

“He’s a merperson!” Alex called back, exasperated. “What do you _think_ will happen?”

Peggy simply laughed and ducked back into the sea. Ten minutes later, John poked his head out from the water.

“Hi, Alex,” he said, smiling. The smile wasn't quite as...radiant as it usually was.

“Hey, John,” Alex replied, grinning a bit too widely. “I thought I’d see you today. How have you been?”

‘It’s…” John hesitated. “It’s been a long day,” he said. “You?”

Alex tapped his fingers on the rock he was sitting on. “Well,” he said. “Today had been...interesting. I feel like I’m missing out on something, but I can’t quite place it…”

“It’s probably nothing,” John said, a bit too quickly. “But it’s nice to see you.” He paused, before admitting, “I wanted to see you.”

“Really?” Alex said, smiling. At least _John_ wanted to see him. Laurens, on the other hand…

“Yeah,” John said. “I didn’t get the chance to earlier--” He cut himself off. “Um, nothing.”

Alex furrowed his eyebrows at that. That just further proved his point that John was actually…

He lost the train of thought as quickly as it came and he blinked, trying to shake off the fog that had settled in his mind.

“What’s wrong?” John asked, concerned.

“Nothing, nothing,” he said quickly, not wanting John to worry. “I’m fine.” To deflect the conversation elsewhere, he pointed up to the stars. “They’re beautiful tonight.”

“They are,” John agreed, taking Alex’s hand. “I haven’t looked at them in a while,” he added softly.

“Remember the constellations we picked out together?” Alex asked. “The ones that looked like us?”

John scanned the night sky. “Right there!” he said, pointing at them. “Because it looks like I have a tail.” He tilted his head. “Kind of.” John laughed, and Alex’s heart stopped.

He swallowed. “John…” he started. “I...um…” 

John turned to look at him. “Yes?”

“I like you,” Alex rushed out, all in one breath. “And I know you like me too.” He squeezed their joined hands. “I just want to know...what are we?”

John looked taken aback by his statement, a bit startled, a bit lost. “I wish it weren’t me,” he murmured quietly. “I wish it was…” He didn’t finish his sentence, instead looking at Alex helplessly. “Alexander, I live in the ocean. I have a _tail_. I like you too, but…”

“It was never meant to be,” Alex whispered.

John nodded slowly, and it could have been the lighting, but Alex could’ve sworn there was a tear there. “You should be with...someone else. Someone closer to you.”

His mind immediately thought _Laurens_ but he dismissed the thought. “No one could hold a candle to you,” he declared. “No one.”

“Alex…” John said, and Alex knew he was nearly not as eloquent as he, so instead he drew himself out of the water as much as he could and reached to touch Alex’s face. “Tell me a little more about the stars, okay?”

Alex squeezed his eyes shut against the prickling in his eyes, knowing that love confessions could never solve half the problems they had. So instead he nodded and watched the stars reflected in John’s eyes. 

“Okay.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for being a day late but I actually have a legitimate excuse. My hands were hurting all week from both writing and drawing so i had to take it slow because I didn't want to damage a nerve or something (or maybe I already have??? idk)
> 
> Also, I'm thinking of a superhero au?? maybe?? in any case, i need some names on superhero names/powers, so comment or message me if you have any ideas and i might write another cliched fic :))))
> 
> ALSO! Adding this now: i feel people are a bit confused on this. The reason Alex cant link john and laurens together is because of the spell thomas placed on him when turning john human


	18. Chapter 18

“You, my friend,” Hercules said to Alex the next morning as he stumbled out of his bedroom. Thankfully, his shop hadn’t opened yet, so he was spared from having customers wandering downstairs in the tailor shop. “Look like death itself.”

Alex shot a glare at him. “Wow, thanks,” he muttered. 

Hercules handed him a coffee, which he grasped like a lifeline. “I told you to take a walk to clear your head. You look even worse than before.”

“Uh-huh,” Alex said, downing his coffee and scalding his tongue.

“Seriously.” Hercules tugged Alex down so they were sitting at the kitchen table. “What’s up?”

Alex sighed, rubbing his eyes. The secret of John had been bearing down on his shoulders, and Alex, ever-talkative, wanted to share it more than ever. “Hercules,” he said quietly. “Nothing I tell you leaves this room, okay?”

“Of course,” Hercules said immediately. “You can trust me. We’ve known each other for years.”

“Right, right,” Alex said, taking a breath. “So, like, hypothetically, what would you do if you’re in love with someone and, hypothetically, they live in the ocean and you live on land?”

Hercules gave a long, slow blink. “What?” he said finally. 

“I have a crush,” Alex said in a rush.

A grin spread on Hercules’ face. “That’s great! Who is it?” 

“A merperson named John?” Alex said, bracing himself for Hercules' reaction.

“A _merperson_ named _John_ ,” Hercules said dryly. “If you didn’t want to tell me, you could’ve just said so.”

Alex resisted the urge to bang his head against the table. “I swear I’m not lying. Merpeople are still out there. I don’t know how many, but I met one.”

Hercules' eyes widened. “They’re still out there?” he asked, shocked. “We have to tell Washington!”

“No one can know!” Alex said frantically. “Please, _please_ don’t tell anyone. You have to promise me.”

Hercules hesitated, but nodded. “I promise,” he said. “I won’t tell anyone. But then—Holy shit, Seabury was _right_? And he was ridiculed after you published _The Sailor Refuted_?”

“I couldn’t let people find out,” Alex said.

“Alex,” Hercules said softly. “You could’ve told me.”

“I know,” Alex said with a sigh. “But there was always the risk that someone might have found out. John’s life is in my hands.”

“So what was your previous question again?” Hercules asked, sipping his coffee.

“I like John,” Alex said. “But he’s a merperson. And he lives in the ocean. It wouldn’t work out.”

Hercules frowned. “I thought you liked Laurens.”

“I do!” Alex said, dropping his head in his hands. “But I like John more. I think. I don’t know!”

“So you don’t want John because he lives in the ocean and you don’t want Laurens because you like John.” Hercules shook his head. “Man, you are screwed.”

“I know,” Alex responded, head still in hands. “I don’t know what to _do_ , Herc.”

“Well, don’t lead Laurens on,” Hercules said forcefully. “He’s my friend and he doesn’t deserve to be your backup choice.”

“I would never do that to him,” Alex said. “He’s my friend too.” He looked at Hercules despairingly. “What should I do? I wish they were the same person.” 

“But they’re not,” Hercules said gently. “Look, Alex, I know it’s hard, but you just have to wait. Crushes will go away. You’ll get over it.”

“I know,” Alex murmured. “But there’s part of me that doesn’t _want_ to get over it.”

“You’ll figure it out,” Hercules said confidently, ruffling Alex’s hair and smiling as Alex scowled at him. “I’m opening the tailor shop downstairs. Maybe go outside and get some fresh air. I feel like you need some alone time.”

Alex nodded, draining the last of his coffee. “Good idea,” he said. 

“Lafayette’s coming today for his new suit,” Hercules said. “I need to go down to my shop.”

Alex nodded and Hercules' expression softened.

“You can tell me anything," he promised. "And I'll help you figure this out, I promise."

Alex nodded again. "I know, Herc," he said. "I trust you." As he watched Hercules leave, he hoped that he wouldn't tell Lafayette about John. He would _never_ believe him. 

* * *

Lafayette swung open the door to Hercules’ shop, smiling in greeting. “Hercules! Lovely to see you!”

“I work here,” Hercules said and Lafayette shrugged. “Still wonderful to see you.”

“Your suit,” Hercules said, taking one of the suits from the rack and handing it to Lafayette. When Lafayette attempted to pay him, he shook his head. “It’s on me,” he said dismissively. “You’re a friend now.”

Lafayette tucked his wallet away, promising himself to repay Hercules later. He set the suit on a chair and sat down in another. “We never hang out without Alex or Laurens,” he complained. “I refuse to leave until we talk to each other.”

Hercules laughed. “It’s so much quieter without them around, huh? How’s your fishing going?”

“Still don’t catch anything,” Lafayette said cheerfully. _Still incredibly rich_ , he thought. “I almost was cursed by a sea witch, though.”

“Really?” Hercules asked. “Why?”

“It was probably an off day,” Lafayette replied. “ _And_ I was almost eaten by sirens but Maria, another siren, saved me, luckily.”

“Why did she do that?”

“I made her sandwiches once,” Lafayette answered and Hercules shook his head, grinning.

“You have the craziest life,” he said. “All I’ve been doing is sewing. Although I _did_ find out about something…”

Lafayette perked up. “What?”

Hercules glanced around. “You can’t tell anyone. I don’t know if you can even tell Laurens." He lowered his voice, leaning forward towards Lafayette. "Merpeople still exist around here.”

Lafayette’s stomach dropped. “No, they don’t,” he said quickly. “I’ve never seen one in my life. Not possible.”

“It’s true!” Hercules insisted. “Alex told me about a merperson he met named John.”

“He _what_?” Lafayette hissed. “How many others do he tell?”

“I don’t know,” Hercules said, looking a little worried about Lafayette’s sudden outburst.

“What if others find out about John? Do you think I should warn him?”

“You know John too?” Hercules asked. “Why doesn’t anyone _tell_ me about these things?”

“Alex—he _cares_ about John, doesn’t he?” Lafayette said, wringing his hands nervously. “He wouldn’t—he’d only tell close friends, right?”

“I’m sure he only wanted advice,” Hercules tried to reassure him. “Alex is a good person, he wouldn’t do anything to hurt him.”

“I know, I know,” Lafayette sighed. “And Laurens—” He snapped his mouth shut.

“We can trust Laurens,” Hercules assured him, and Lafayette nearly rolled his eyes, because _of course_ he could trust Laurens. “I don’t think he’s human, anyway. And he always disappears at night, which is kind of strange. He always gets defensive on the topic of merpeople, anyway. Almost as if he’s—”

"Oh my god," Hercules breathed, mind piecing everything together. "It's so obvious. Laurens is—" Lafayette hit him on the top of his head with a clothes hanger. "Shut up!" he hissed. “Someone could hear you!”

“You _knew_?” Hercules gaped at him. “How much have you been hiding from me?”

“Not much else,” Lafayette said guiltily. “You understand why I had to, right? John—Laurens—whatever you prefer, could be in danger.”

“Does Alex…?”

“No.” Lafayette shook his head. “And he most certainly can not find out. If he does, the spell’s broken.” 

But as the secret wore thin, Lafayette couldn’t help but think that that was inevitable.

* * *

Alex’s hands skimmed his papers, leafing through maps and notes, chewing his lip thoughtfully as he regarded an account of the scraggly rocks, home to sirens who have no doubt lured sailors away for years. 

_Probably be good to avoid that_ , he thought wryly.

Lost in thought, he hardly noticed a person enter, until:

“Hey, Alex.”

Alex’s head snapped up to see Laurens leaning against the doorframe, a slightly crooked smile on his face. Alex stared back down at his work—the work he was planning on burying himself in to distract himself _from_ Laurens.

Well, that was useless now. He launched himself up from his desk, shooting a flimsy smile at Laurens that he didn’t really feel. “Hey,” he said. “What’s up?”

“I’m good,” Laurens said with a shrug. “Are you—” he squinted at Alex. “Are you okay?”

“Yeah, yeah, I’m fine,” Alex said dismissively. “Things...things happen, you know?” He swallowed, trying not to think of last night’s events.

“I know,” Laurens said softly, pity and guilt lacing his features. Why Laurens would be _guilty_ about anything, Alex didn’t understand. 

“Anyway,” Alex said, moving a paper. “What brings you here, Laurens?”

“Just passing by,” said Laurens. “What are you up to?’ 

“Maps,” Alex said, gesturing at his papers. “There’s an unrecorded sea monster somewhere in these waters, and, as navigator, I have to make sure we don’t ram into rocks.”

“Huh,” Laurens said, walking over to him. “How do you know where to go?”

“Well,” Alex said. “These maps are certainly a help. I also use this,” he gestured to a compass. “For basic direction.”

“What’s that?” Laurens asked, looking at the compass curiously.

“You don’t know…?” Alex started, then shook his head. “It’s a device that uses a needle to point to magnetic north.” 

“Useful,” Laurens commented. “What else do you use?”

“Well, at night, I can use the stars to get my bearing.” Alex pulled out a map of the stars. “I can use Polaris to find North. Orion helps with east and west. Depending on the time, you can also use the moon and sun.”

“You can see the constellations,” Laurens murmured, tracing the stars. “I love watching the stars.”

 _Like John_ , Alex thought, a pang in his heart. Out loud, he said, “So do I. They’re so beautiful, aren’t they?”

“Mmm,” Laurens agreed. His hand moved over a cluster of stars. “Those sort of look like two people,” he said, squinting. His head darted up and shot a grin at Alex. “Maybe it’s us in the stars.”

Alex’s heart stopped right then, because isn’t that what he told John when they were together that one evening, looking at stars? And Laurens is looking at him, with this slightly-amused smile, and everything is so confusing and he doesn’t know if this _means_ anything or if this is just him with two pathetic crushes, trying to link together two different people because he hopes—wishes—they were real.

But, because he’s Alexander Hamilton with his unhealthy coping mechanisms, he just pushes everything down and smiles at Laurens, because at least he’s there with him.

And he thinks to himself, _please, God, don't let me ruin this too._

* * *

“You told Laf about John?” Alex nearly shrieked, rounding on Hercules at exactly 6:30 AM. 

Hercules held up his hands. “He already knew!” he defended himself. “Laf knows everything, anyway.” He winced, closing his eyes briefly. “And could you keep it down? It’s way too early to be yelling.”

Alex sighed, raking a hand through his hair. “You’re right. I’m sorry. Did you tell him about my...you know…”

Hercules rolled his eyes. “Your crush? No, but I wouldn’t be surprised if Lafayette also already knew about _that_. I wouldn’t be surprised if _he_ turned out to be magic.”

“Good,” Alex breathed. “I don’t want _him_ down my back too. I’ve got you to deal with and I’m pretty sure Martha Washington’s suspecting something because I keep rambling to her about Laurens. Not to mention those nereids who pop up now and then.”

“Nereids?” Hercules repeated.

“Yeah,” Alex said. “They’re beautiful, smart, and terrifying. And they happen to give me the shovel talk anytime I come near them because John’s their friend.”

“Yikes,” Hercules said.

“I know,” Alex said wryly, swinging on his coat. “Well. I’m out for a walk then. See you later.”

“Careful out there,” Hercules said, looking out the window. “It’s raining pretty hard.”

“I’ll be fine!” Alex called back, walking downstairs and opening the door and being greeted with a sheet of rain. The sun had risen, but it was covered in clouds so the sky was as dark as a winter morning. He stepped outside and shivered as a gust of wind blew through him.

“What a fucking day,” he muttered as he walked around town, practically soaked already.

“Mr. Hamilton!” A voice chirped and Alex looked up to see Phlip grinning at him, perched on a lamp post. He jumped down, wings flaring out just enough to slow his fall. He ran to Alex, a smile on his face. “Isn’t this a perfect way to start the day?”

“Uh-huh,” Alex said, not wanting to damper Philip’s mood. It wasn’t Philip could even feel the rain, anyway—he was made of solid rock. 

“Whatcha doing?” Philip asked as he skipped beside Alex. 

“I was thinking of just walking around,” Alex replied, smiling because Philip’s happiness was infectious. “What were you up to?”

Philip shrugged, reaching up to take Alex’s hand. “Stuff,” he said mysteriously, which led Alex to believe he was over at the Washington’s, who gave him picture books to read and crayons to draw with. Philip never liked to admit he enjoyed these things, declaring that “he was a monster and monsters didn’t _color_ ”. “I’ve also been thinking,” Philip added.

“Oh?” Alex asked, wondering what he had thought up this time.

“Our friend Laurens confused me,” Philip said. “Because he said he was human.”

Alex frowned. “But he _is_ ,” he pointed out.

Philip shook his head, wings fluttering. “He didn’t seem human though. I could detect a layer of magic, so thick it couldn’t be just a spell. You know how that happens?”

Alex didn’t, but he decided to humor Philip. “Sure,” he decided.

Philip grinned, happy Alex agreed with him. “So I was thinking and I realized he wasn’t a human at all!”

“What?” Alex asked, looking down at Philip.

“He’s a merperson,” Philip said, yellow eyes glowing. “It makes sense, doesn’t it! And he always looks out into the sea and haven’t you noticed you’ve only seen him after seven? That must be when he returns to sea!”

Alex glanced down at his watch. It was nearing seven now. “That’s because he’s sleeping,” Alex said. “Why would he wake up at six?”

“The marquis wakes up at _four_ to go out fishing,” Philip said excitedly, knowing he had made a point. “And Laurens works for him!”

“It’s all just coincidental,” Alex said, reaching down to ruffle Philip’s hair. “I’m sure we’ve just missed him at those times. Besides, merpeople don’t live in these waters.”

Philip pouted. “Don’t be so condescending,” he complained. “I’m a hundred years older than you.”

_Not mentally_ , Alex thought. 

“I gotta go,” Philip said, letting go of Alex’s hand. “I still think he’s a merperson though. I can recognize Thomas’s magic anywhere and he’s the only sorcerer left in these lands. I swear, if he helps in starting another war, I’ll—” His eyes glowed, and Alex stepped back somewhat nervously, because Philip, despite how adorable and young he seemed, _was_ a monster and a fairly old one at that.

And then Philip was smiling again, radiating innocence and pure sunshine on this rainy day. “I’ll see you later, Mr. Hamilton!” he called as he raced away, waving at Alex. “Bye!”

“Bye,” Alex said, waving back, completely mystified of what exactly their conversation meant.

He looked back at his watch. It was 6:50. If he walked to Lafayette’s, he’d get there at 7:00. 

Alex made up his mind, changing his direction towards the beach. If Laurens truly was a merperson, he’d get there in time to see him change back.

But he wasn’t, so why worry about _that_?

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> i feel as though i have a problem with rain and stars in my writing.


	19. Chapter 19

The rain seemed to worsen on Alex’s way to the beach, clouds thickening and darkening. The drops splashed down on his skin harshly, and he swept a strand of hair away from his face. _This isn’t natural_ , he thought, staring up at the sky.

“Alex!” Alex turned to see a girl run out from the ocean towards him. He squinted at her, recognizing her faint glow and dark hair. “Angelica? Peggy?” he snapped his fingers. “Eliza!”

Eliza grabbed his arms, forcing him to look at her. “You can’t go to Lafayette’s house,” she said, desperation in her voice. “You _can’t_.”

Alex frowned. “Why not?”

“I can’t say,” Eliza said. “There’s a spell on Laurens and it will be broken if you see him.”

“ _What_?” Alex said, shaking his head. “That’s ridiculous. You don’t even _know_ him, anyway.” He moved to brush her off, but Eliza's grip tightened.

“Alex, please,” Eliza begged him. “You don’t know what you’re dealing with. Look!” She pointed towards the sky. “That’s magic right there.”

“It’s rain,” Alex said, raising an eyebrow.

“It’s Thomas’ magic,” Eliza said. “He’s being nice, just this once, and is giving you a warning. Stop now. Just...go back home.”

“Who is Thomas?” Alex said, frustrated. First, Philip, now Eliza…”What is going on? _Why can no one tell me what the heck is happening_?”

“Alex,” Eliza started and Alex ripped his arm away from her grasp. 

“I’m not letting some magic,” he gestured at the sky. “and some _secrets_ stop me from doing whatever the fuck I want!”

“There’s magic that stops you from seeing what’s real,” Eliza said. “All of it’s tied together--Laurens, John, merpeople, magic…”

“I…” Alex said, trying to process her words, but finding he couldn’t. “I can’t…”

“See?” Eliza said desperately. “You _can’t_ understand me! That’s part of the spell. So just listen to me. Don’t go to see Laurens. Please.”

“You’re telling me someone put a _spell_ on me?” Alex raked a hand through his hair. “And no one decided to _tell_ me?” He glared upwards at the sky as if that’d help anything. “Well, fuck that. I’m not going to have a spell control what I do.”

“Your pride will be your downfall,” Eliza said, looking at him sadly, and the pity in her eyes angered him even further.

“And maybe immortality has ruined you,” he said. “Because you seem to forget that humans aren’t just playthings for beings like you.”

Hurt flashed in Eliza’s eyes and she backed away, holding her hands. “Let it be remembered I tried,” she said resignedly, looking up at the sky. The rain, while soaking everything else, didn’t seem to touch a nereid like her. Her hair and dress and skin seemed to be forever perfect and Alex wanted to hate her for that, but it was hard to hate someone like Eliza.

Alex watched as she left, stepping into the sea, her eyes casting upwards to the sky once more before she disappeared into the sea. He stared at the empty space where she was before gritting his teeth and walking towards Lafayette’s house.

_If Laurens_ is _a merperson_ , he thought, _that means that he’s…_ He lost his idea, the train of thought snapping like an elastic band. _Fucking spell_ , he thought instead.

When he made it to Lafayette’s house, the wind was harsh and the rain stung his skin. Warm yellow light poured through the door and he could hear Lafayette humming to himself from inside. He nearly knocked on the door, but his eyes caught on a tail, bright green in the blue-gray ocean, and he walked towards the side of the house, where a dock was placed out onto the ocean. There was a bundle of clothes folded up neatly on it, sheltered from the rain by the overhanging roof. He watched as John stopped in front of the docks and stood up and he had _legs_ now and he looked _human_ and he looked like _Laurens_ and--

Alex tore his gaze away from John and towards the ocean and he could’ve sworn he saw some _thing_ with a human head rise up from the water, with bright magenta tentacles surrounding it. It held up a hand, five fingers displayed. _Five minutes_. Five minutes before what? 

He turned his attention back towards John who was fully clothed now and tying his hair back. He turned and Alex stepped back because _oh god that was Laurens_.

John caught sight of Alex and his skin paled. He froze, staring at Alex.

“John,” Alex breathed. “You’re...you’re Laurens. What the…” He stepped forward, once. “ _What the actual fuck?_ ”

“Um,” John said.

“You--you _lied_ to me?” Everything was making sense now, and he felt like he was trapped in a hurricane, helplessly stuck in the middle. “And everyone else knew but me? I was tricked this _entire_ time?”

“Alex, wait,” John said, spreading his hands placatingly. “It wasn’t like that.” 

Alex couldn’t help but feel disgusted to see John in a human’s body, the illusion of _Laurens_ still haunting him. “You played with me,” he said, realization sinking in. “You...you flirted with me and told me you _liked_ me and then broke my heart only to toy with it again as a human. Why would you even…” He was clenching his fists so tightly they were turning white. “Why would you even _do_ that?”

“I didn’t mean to hurt you,” John said. He closed his eyes, taking a deep breath. “I became human because I wanted to explore land ashore. I...I wanted to be with you as Laurens, but I didn’t know what to do since you already liked me as John…”

“You had a pretty shitty way of dealing with it,” Alex snapped. 

“God, Alexander,” John said, gritting his teeth. “Would you at least give me a chance to explain myself?”

“Fine, then,” Alex said, crossing his arms. “Explain yourself.”

“I like you,” John said, with a small, sad smile on his face, and Alex wanted to melt at that, but he dug his fingernails into his arms and looked away. “You know that. I couldn’t tell you because the spell that turned me human is tied to you. If you saw me as a human, it would be broken.”

Alex didn’t respond, which John took as a sign to continue.

“I...I really fucked things up,” John said quietly, wrapping his arms around himself and rocking back and forth. “I put my entire race in danger, I caused Laf and Maria and the nereids so many problems, I hurt _you_ …” He took in a shuddering breath. “I just wanted to be up here,” He whispered. “I wanted to explore land. Look where curiosity brought me.” He gave a harsh laugh. “I’m sorry, Alex. I shouldn’t have gotten you tied up in all of this.”

Alex was silent, his anger crumbling away. “You made a ton of mistakes,” he said finally. “But I...I shouldn’t have lost my temper.” He sighed, closing his eyes. “I don’t understand magic,” he continued. “And I don’t pretend to know what happened to merpeople or what you feel or the challenges you’re facing, but I _want_ to understand. I can’t do that if you keep secrets from me, John.”

“No more secrets,” John promised quickly, eyes shining. “I swear on it. Even if the spell--” He broke off, eyes widening. “The spell.”

He whipped around towards the sea, eyes scanning the waves. “Thomas gave me time,” he breathed. “Time to talk to you. The spell’s broken.”

_Five minutes_. “John, what--” Alex darted forward to grab John’s hand, but snatched it back immediately. His skin was hot to the touch, so much so that it burned. Alex watched as his clothes burned off, raindrops sizzling and hissing as it touched his skin. “I have to go,” John said, his eyes turning greener and greener, his teeth sharpening and his ears growing pointier. He stepped backward off into the sea and Alex watched as a tail formed in the water. 

“John, wait!” Alex cried out, lunging to take his hand again. His skin was cooling down now, and Alex couldn’t help but think: _What the fuck kind of spell…?_

“What’s going on? Is the spell broken?" 

“I need to go find Thomas,” John said. “He’s a sorcerer, the one who placed this spell on me. I’ll come back.”

Alex kissed the back of John’s hand softly, before releasing it. “Come back to me,” he said quietly. “As human, as merperson, as a fucking dolphin, _I don’t care_ , just come back to me.”

“I will,” John said. “I promise.” And with that he was gone, his green tail like a flickering flame in the dark blue sea and Alex was left staring at him, alone on the dock, rain still pouring down on him.

The door creaked open and Lafayette stepped outside, walking over to Alex. His eyes landed on the burned clothing and the just-barely-visible tail on the horizon and he looked down at Alex, too shocked to even move.

“Crepes?” Lafayette suggested weakly.

* * *

The depths were as dark and gloomy as John had remembered them to be. The chill settled deep into his bones and he glanced upwards, hoping for a glimpse of the surface but seeing nothing but blackness.

Thomas and James’ cave was still there, glowing faintly in the dark blue light. 

He ventured in to see James in his usual seat, poring over a book and Thomas lazily shooting wisps of magic from his fingertips. When he saw John, he sat up, closing his hand over the magic and grinned.

“Well,” Thomas said cheerfully. “You fucked up.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> they were supposed to kiss...it was supposed to be really romantic...but then this happened...this chapter is all over the place im sorry


	20. Chapter 20

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> a fair warning: this chapter is really really rough

“Wow,” John said. “Like I didn’t already know I fucked up.”

“That’s why I told you,” Thomas said, looking immensely proud of himself. “You really messed up this time, Jack. Can I call you Jack?”

“No,” John said. 

“Well, fine, then,” Thomas said, offended.

James rolled his eyes and set down his book. “What do you need?” he asked John.

“I want a spell to turn me into a human,” John said. “Fully. I’ve been thinking and this is what I want now.”

James and Thomas exchanged a look. “I don’t have that sort of spell,” Thomas said finally. “That’s incredibly powerful magic, to change a being’s form permanently and completely. I…” He shrugged. “I can’t help you with that.”

“I can pay anything,” John protested.

“Still can’t do anything,” Thomas said, looking at John with something like pity in his eyes. “I mean, the only person I know of who could perform magic like that was…” His mouth snapped shut. “Well, you get the idea.”

John narrowed his eyes, swimming forward. “No, I don’t. What do you mean?”

Thomas shot James a panicked look, which James returned with a blank stare. _You’re on your own here_. Thomas sighed and turned back to John, a tentacle moving to nervously play with a curl.

“I wasn’t the only sorcerer, you know,” he said finally. “I was trained by someone else.” He hesitated again. “Queen Eleanor, your mother, had the most powerful magic I knew of.”

“My mother?” John gasped. “No, she didn’t know magic, she would’ve told me, I would’ve _known…_ ” But even as he talked, he knew that it was the truth. It would explain why the Washington thought she was a shapeshifter, how she was able to go ashore. 

“She kept it hidden,” Thomas continued. “She hardly even used her magic until the war, where she would shapeshift into a human and act as a spy for the merpeople. When the war finally ended, she thought that she alone could mend the gap between humans and merpeople. So she went up on land but humans saw her transform. They panicked, thinking it was black magic, a shapeshifter that was playing tricks on them. Queen Eleanor realized her mistake and turned back into a merperson and tried to get away, but something happened, I don’t know what and—” He broke off.

“And she died,” James finished.

“And you say _I’m_ the tactless one,” Thomas muttered. “So there you have it,” he addressed John. “Satisfied now?”

_No,_ John wanted say, he didn’t feel satisfied now, he felt broken more than ever, wanted nothing more than to run to his mother’s arms and wish that the war had never happened. But instead he swallowed and said, “So there’s no hope of going back to land now, is there?” 

James hesitated. “Well…maybe not. I’m not that sensitive to magic but even I could detect magic on you. You have a gift, John, and you might as well figure out how to use it?”

“Me?” John said, shocked, staring down at his hands. “But...but I’ve never done magic before.”

Thomas smiled wryly. “We all start somewhere, don’t we,” he said. “Good luck, John,” he said. “That’s the last thing I can give you.”

“Thank you,” John replied and turning to go. He looked back once, watching Thomas and James quietly talk with one another, and thought that it wasn’t such a bad life they were living down here.

* * *

“So. What now?” The nereids sisters were lounging with Maria on the half-sunken ship, with John in the water next to them. “What are you going to do?”

John shrugged helplessly. “I have no idea,” he confessed. “I’m lost.”

Eliza sighed, burying her face in her hands. “I’m sorry,” she said. “I tried to get Alex to stop but I came across as condescending and I failed, John, I’m so sorry, I could’ve stopped him.”

“It’s not your fault,” Angelica replied immediately. “It’s that _Hamilton’s_ fault.”

“No one’s to blame,” Maria interrupted. “Arguing will get us nowhere. Now, the best we can do is try and help John get back to land.”

“I don’t even know why you’d want to leave,” Peggy said. “The sea is amazing.” She kicked water at John with her foot.

John swatted her foot away. “I like land much better,” he said. “Down here is so boring. But at the same time…” He sighed. “I would miss the sea. It’s everything to me.”

“It’s everything to us as well,” Angelica replied. “Especially nereids. I’ve been alive for a long time and it’s given me an appreciation for my home.”

John frowned at her. “How old are you, exactly? Like, twenty?”

“503,” Angelica said. “But you were close. We nereids were created from the waves themselves.”

“How are you able to walk ashore?” John asked her. "If you’re part of the sea?”

Angelica thought for a moment before answering carefully. "We are linked to the ocean, true, but the ocean is everywhere, if you think about it. In the seaside winds, in the salty air, in the fresh rain. Everywhere. And the ocean is linked to you as much as you are to it." 

She reached down and took John’s wrist, tapping it once. "Your blood, your bones, _you_ are full of the spirit of the sea, and that’s not going to change if you become human or go ashore or anything. You’re home comes with you whether you like it or not." 

Angelica smiled at him. "You already know the answer. I’m able to walk ashore _because_ I am part of the sea." She released his wrist and he clutched it, staring at her and soaking up the information.

"You got it now?" Angelica asked him.

"I...yeah," he said. "I got it."

* * *

Aaron never really liked the ocean.

He didn’t like the salty smell or the cold water or the rains and wind each wave brought to shore. The one good thing that ever came out of it was Theodosia and now she lived on land. 

He was climbing through the rocks and staring off into sea when a face popped out from beneath the waves. “Hey,” it said.

“Hey,” Aaron replied, unnerved. He had seen much weirder things in the time he was alive. He knelt down, recognizing the curly hair and freckles. “So. I’m guessing the spell broke?” His eyes flitted down to John’s tail meaningfully.

“Yup,” John said, popping the p. He smiled ruefully and Aaron had a feeling he felt much worse than what he was letting on. “I ‘fucked up’ as Thomas said.” 

Aaron raised his eyebrows. “The spell was from Thomas? I feel bad for you.”

“You know Thomas?” John asked. “What did he do to you?”

Aaron winced, recalling a very certain period in his life he vowed never to think of again. “I didn’t want to be a shapeshifter anymore. The spell to stay as my original form nearly killed me. It wasn’t fun. At least it taught me to accept who I am.”

“Thomas’s powers are...unreliable,” John said. “But you have magic as well.”

Aaron nodded. “Doesn’t feel like much of a power to me,” he commented, raising his hand and watching it shift and change. He could do so effortlessly with a mere thought. “It’s just...natural.”

“I—I think I might be magic,” John confessed. “My mother was magic and it might have passed down to me.”

“You want to use your magic to change your shape,” Aaron said slowly. “John...you _can’t_.”

“I _can_ ,” John said stubbornly.

Aaron resisted the urge to bang a rock against his head. “No, you _physically_ can’t. Magic is hard work and shifting your form unnaturally is even harder. You could hurt yourself or kill yourself or become an amalgamation of flesh and scales.”

“I’ll figure it out,” John said confidently. “If my mother could do it, I can too.”

Aaron sighed. “Well, if you kill yourself, I’m not going to be the one to tell Alex.” He fell silent for a moment, before speaking again. “You know you’re going to have to tell them, right? Lafayette, Hercules, Alex...You’re going to have to tell them everything.”

“I know,” John said apprehensively.

Aaron stood up, a slight smile on his face. “I’ll go over and tell them to meet you here, okay?”

“Thanks, Aaron” John said, with a relieved smile. "It means a lot to me."

Aaron turned and closed his eyes. His form shrank and his skin prickled as feathers covreed his arms, his legs, his face, until he was a small, dark, raven. As he took off, he thought, somewhat wryly, that John’s problem of being stuck between worlds was rather like his own.

* * *

Lafayette was practically sprinting towards the beach. The sand kicking up as he ran towards the rocks where John, according to Burr, was waiting for them.

Alex and Hercules made their way a bit more slowly. Alex’s stomach was turning at the thought of having to talk to John and (ugh) confront his feelings.

They arrived at the rocks to see Lafayette jump in the water to hug John. Hercules winced as the suit he had made was soaked with saltwater.

“John, you left without a goodbye!” Lafayette scolded him, even though he was still clinging to John’s shoulders. “You worried me sick!”

“Who are you, my mom?” John asked, rolling his eyes, but he was smiling.

“'Sup, Laurens,” Hercules said, settling on a rock. “Or is it John now? Pretty nice tail you’ve got there.”

“Hi, Herc,” John replied. “I’m assuming you know about me now?”

Hercules grinned. “You could say that.” He turned to Lafayette. “Get out of the water. You’re freezing to death.”

Lafayette reluctantly let go of John and climbed out of the water, dripping and shivering, and Hercules shook his head, exasperated.

All this time Alex was standing off to the side, awkwardly waiting for the happy reunion to be finished. John caught sight of him and there was a long moment of silence as they stared at each other.

“Hey, Alex,” John said finally.

“Hey,” Alex responded. There was another stretched moment, before Alex reached over to take John’s hand. “You worried me.”

John looked down at their hands, surprised. “I guess I’m forgiven then?” he asked weakly.

“Completely forgiven,” Alex promised him. “We have bigger problems to focus on now.” It felt good, he thought, to have the four of them together again. He had missed this more than he thought.

“So…” Lafayette said, drumming his fingers on the rock. His feet dangled in the water. “The spell is broken. My crepes are uneaten. How much worse can it get?”

“Are you going to stay a merperson?” Hercules asked John, forever the practical one. “Is there anyway you can change back?”

John seemed to sink further into the water. “I have a few...ideas,” he said delicately. “I _want_ to become human. I don’t think I can just go back to how life was before all of this.” He waved a hand. “I think...I think it’ll be better this way for the merpeople too. I’d be a shit king. My sister Martha is much better suited for the job.”

“We could use you as an ambassador or something!” Alex said, eyes shining. His mind was already racing with ideas. “We could repair the bridge between merpeople and humans!” An unrealistic idea, he knew, but this could be the _start_ of something.

“But none of that’s going to work if we can’t figure out a way to turn him human,” Lafayette pointed out. “So we’re back to square one.”

“We’re not though!” John corrected Lafayette. “I might have some magic in me, from my mother’s side. I could try to change my form.”

“Could that work?” Hercules looked at John doubtfully. 

“I don’t know how powerful I am,” John replied. “Or even if I _am_ magic. So...maybe? But I also might die if I screw up. So. That’s something.” His voice shook slightly and Alex realized he was more scared than he was letting on. If John was willing to risk dying for becoming a human...

“You can’t risk your life like that!” Alex protested. “I can’t lose you again. I _can’t_. If you died, I’d—” He stopped, clutching John’s hand like a lifeline.

“Hey,” Lafayette muttered, nudging Hercules. “I think I left something on the stove.”

Hercules frowned. “No you didn’t…” he started before catching Lafayette’s meaningful gaze. “Oh. _Oh_. Yeah, I think you did. We should go check. Both of us.”

The two scrambled up, ushering quick goodbyes to John and Alex, before leaving for Lafayette’s house. John and Alex were left alone.

“I don’t want you to die,” Alex said quietly. “I’ve lost enough people in my life and I’m not ready to add you to the list.” 

“I won’t die.”

“You can’t promise that.”

John was silent for a moment and Alex thought he was going to say something incredibly insightful until he blinked up at Alex and asked, “What’s a tomato?”

“ _What?_ ”

“A tomato,” John said. “I see—or used to see—them at the market but I have no idea what they are. I’m still learning about all this _land_ stuff. Are they like...apples?”

“No,” Alex said, staring at John and wondering what he must have done in his past life to lecture a merperson about a tomato. “No, while they’re technically a fruit, tomatoes—” He shook his head. “Whatever! It doesn’t matter! You are not going to do anything that puts your life in danger.”

“Alex,” John murmured with a soft smile on his face. He moved up closer to Alex, pushing himself up on the rock. “I will be fine. You need to trust me.”

“I do.” Alex kissed John’s cheek, tasting salt. “I trust you. I just want you to know that I’ll love you no matter what you are.”

“I’m not doing this only for you,” John admitted. “Even though you’re a big part of it. I feel as though I can make more of a difference on land than I could ever in the ocean.”

“We’ll change the world together,” Alex said, a smile spreading across his face. 

John pressed Alex’s hand to his mouth and he could feel the curve of his lips against it. The ocean was still—there were no waves or wind, the air quiet except for the occasional cry of a gull and Alex felt hopeful for once.

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> im really tired and i dont know what i just wrote, bear with me here


	21. Chapter 21

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Sorry for the wait! Last week was really tough with testing :/ I feel like I should edit this more or something but, whatever

The crown would go to Martha. 

John had won it for her after an hour of arguing and pleading and persuading, trying to convince his father that a firstborn daughter was just as good as a son, and that royal blood ran through her veins too.

_I choose myself over the kingdom_ , John had told his father. _Martha isn’t as selfish as I am._

“You’re really going up there, then,” Martha murmured as the two swam side by side through the corals. “Or die trying.”

“When you say it like that,” John said. “It makes me sound like an idiot.”

“You _are_ an idiot,” Martha shot back, nudging him just enough so he rammed into a coral. John pushed her back in retaliation and she laughed. It felt like they were kids again.

“You have to bring me souvenirs when you go ashore,” Martha told John. “I’ll visit you every day.”

“That seems a bit excessive,” John commented. “I was thinking maybe once a year?” He grinned at his sister’s shocked expression and she swatted at him.

“You’re a terrible brother,” she complained. “I’m happy to see you go.” Martha seemed to be blocking the possibility of John ending up dead and John couldn’t help but be grateful for that. Not only did it help _him_ , it also helped ease the worry of Mary Eleanor and James.

“It’s not like I’ll be gone forever,” John said. “We can still swim together.”

“Yeah,” Martha agreed. “But no diving.” She wrinkled her nose. “Humans have such small lungs.”

“I know,” John said with a sigh. “The price for having toes.”

“Toes?” Martha asked. “That’s, like, reverse fingers, right?”

“Sure. Let’s go with that.” John shook his head, doing a loop in the water because he could. “Want to go chase some sea turtles with Mary and James?”

A small smile played on Martha’s lips. “Aren’t we a bit old for that?”

John laughed. “We’re never too old for turtles,” he replied, grinning. “C’mon Martha. One last time.”

“One last time,” Martha repeated with a smile. “Sounds good to me.”

* * *

“I can’t tell if you’re very brave or very stupid,” Maria murmured from where she was perched on a rock with Eliza and Angelica.

“Go for the second one,” Peggy said, in the water next to John. John threw a glare at her and she stuck her tongue out at him. 

“Bring me back a necklace,” Eliza told him. “Preferably blue.”

“I can get you a necklace,” Maria said to her, looking hurt.

“I meant by _legal_ means,” Eliza responded and Maria rolled her eyes.

“Since when do we care about legality?” she scoffed. She paused, before turning her attention on John. “But if you’re getting a necklace for Eliza, I’d like a pair of earrings?”

“I feel so loved,” John said dryly.

“I’ll take a ring,” Angelica said, stretching her hand out in front of her and examining it. “A nice one too, not one of those cheap ones made of plastic.”

John eyed Peggy warily. “Do _you_ want anything?”

“Nah,” Peggy assured him. “Just promise to visit some time.”

“Of course I will,” John said. “What, you think you’ll forget about me? I’m worried _you’ll_ forget _me._ You guys are immortal, after all.”

“That’ll come in time,” Angelica replied, shrugging in the flippant of an immortal. She slid into the water with hardly a splash, swimming over to join Peggy and John. “We can worry later.”

“Be safe, John, okay?” Eliza said, curling a strand of hair around her finger. “I know that’s practically useless right now, but...be safe.”

“I—” Realizing he could make no promises, John just nodded “Thanks, Eliza. I”m going to miss you guys.”

Angelica smiled at him. “The ocean will always be with you. We’ll always be here. You’re not losing anything.”

* * *

The sky was a bright blue, wisps of clouds drifting across the sky. The calm water was dappled with sunlight. The sun shone down on him as he looked down on his tail. If his magic worked, this would be the last time John would see that. He wondered if his mother would be proud of him.

He didn’t even know how to use magic. Thomas had been unhelpful, claiming that magic was different from user to user, so there was no use in stalling.

“Okay,” he murmured. “Let’s do this.”

There was a pull in his gut, a low thrum in his ears, the thought of his body shaping and shifting into a human, the feeling of sand under his feet, the taste of fresh fruit, the warmth of Alex’s hand in his...

His fingers tingled with magic, snaking its way around its body, sparks jumping and searing his skin, a steady burn engulfing him, and he closed his eyes and smiled.

* * *

“Sir?” one of the sailors, Charles Lee, ran up to where Washington and Aaron were sorting papers. “We found a body washed up on beach.”

“Human?” Washington asked.

Lee hesitated. “I have no idea.”

Washington frowned. “We’d better check it out.” He turned to Aaron. “Burr, come with me. We might need backup.”

Aaron nodded and followed him out the door and down to the beach. It had been a quiet day of work (mainly because Alex had taken a day off, per Washington’s request), so the thought of a new creature found was exciting.

“It’s over here,” Lee said, beckoning them over to where two other sailors were crouched over a body. “It looks humanoid but it’s not. It kind of looks like—” He shook his head. “Just come over here.”

Aaron walked over to the creature, frowning. The body was pale from the cold waters, limp and lifeless. It had freckles dotting it and curly hair and—

“Are those scales?” Washington furrowed his eyebrows as he grabbed the creatures arm and looked at it. “The ears almost look like fins. What is this?”

He moved the body so it’s face was shown and Aaron’s eyes widened in shock. _It’s John._ He crouched down and grabbed his wrist, thankful to feel a pulse. “He’s alive,” Aaron breathed with relief. “We need to get him inside quickly. I don’t know if he can handle the cold well in this form.”

Washington nodded briskly and quickly took off his coat and wrapped it around John before ordering the other sailors to grab a stretcher. Only when they were gone did he finally ask, “What was that? Will it be all right?”

“I don’t know,” Aaron admitted. “His name is John. He used magic to try and transform into human and I guess…” He gripped his own arms tightly, feeling the skin under it turn into scales. “I guess it didn’t work all the way.”

“What was he originally?”

Aaron looked out to sea uneasily. “I’d rather not have the ocean against me,” he said delicately. He could feel the salty wind prick at his eyes, like the hard gaze of a nereid. “I’ll let him tell you for himself.”

* * *

John woke up on a small bed with a start, bolting upwards and frantically looking around. 

“Calm down, son.” John turned to see George Washington watching him. “You’re okay.”

“Where am I?” he demanded. He could still hear the faint buzz of magic in his skull.

“You’re at my house,” Washington replied with a smile. “You’ve been sleeping for a while.”

John closed his eyes, but snapped them back open when he caught sight of his arms. “What the…”

There were a few scales dotting his arms and he threw off the covers to see even more around his legs where his tail had been. His skin felt colder than the temperature of a human but warmer than that of a merperson.

“A mirror,” he whispered, staring in shock at his hands, fingers long and thin but with the short nails of a human.

Washington passed him a small mirror and he stared at himself. His eyes were green—not brown, but not electric green either. 

“What are you?” Washington asked. “Aaron wouldn’t tell me. You’re not human, but you aren’t anything like I’ve ever seen before.”

“I was a merperson,” John said, placing the mirror carefully on a bedside table. “And I suppose I kept a bit of that with me while becoming human.” He thought back to what Angelica had said, and smiled wryly. _The sea runs through my veins...it doesn’t seem to want to leave very easily._

“A merperson?” Washington sat up. “Are you the last of your kind?” 

“No,” John replied. “It’s a...It’s a long story.”

“Of course,” Washington said. “You should rest, son.” He smiled at him kindly. “I forgot to introduce myself. I’m George Washington.”

“I know,” John said, before he could stop himself. Washington looked surprise.

“We’ve met before,” John explained. “I turned human before this attempt. I went under the name of Laurens?”

“You’re Laurens?” Washington didn’t look altogether surprised, since they did, of course, look similar. “Does Alex…”

“I need to tell him.” John gripped the bedsheets tightly. “I need to—”

“Rest?” Washington finished for him. “Aaron told me that you’d be exhausted after that amount of magic.”

‘“Is Aaron here?”

Washington nodded. “He’s with my wife. I can get him for you.”

“Can you?” John asked gratefully. “I need to talk to him.”

Washington gave him one more comforting smile before leaving the room. A minute later, Aaron opened the door and walked cautiously in. 

“I told you it wouldn’t work,” he said, by a way of greeting.

John rolled his eyes. “Wow. Thanks for the support.” 

“But you did better than I thought,” Aaron added, as if that were any consolation. “I mean, you look _basically_ human.” 

“Basically human,” John repeated. “Not exactly what I was going for.”

Aaron stared at him for a moment, thinking. “Let’s go for a walk,” he decided.

* * *

Washington had been right to rest, John thought as his legs wobbled slightly while they walked around the town.

“You should join the _Sons of Liberty_ ,” Aaron said to him. “Washington would be happy to take you on. Besides, I would like another non-human creature on the crew.”

“Maybe,” John replied. “I have a lot of ideas. About connecting the land and the sea. There are so many misconceptions on both ends and if the two just _work_ together…”

“You sound like Alex,” Aaron commented, amused and John smiled at the thought.

“I know what it’s like now,” John continued. “To be stuck between worlds. It...it really fucking sucks.”

“Tell me about,” Aaron sighed. “There are infinite possibilities for shapeshifters, but we’ll never fit in. But this form…” He gestured at himself. “This is pretty good.”

They were nearing Hercules’ tailor shop and John knew now where Aaron was headed. Before they could step inside, John asked him, “What’s your true form?”

Aaron looked at him and smiled sadly. “I don’t quite remember,” he admitted, before opening the door and walking into the shop.

* * *

Lafayette shrieked when he saw John, running over to him and crushing him in a hug. “John! You’re alive! You’re human!”

Hercules joined the hug and lifted the two of them up. “We were so worried!” he said, grinning. “But you did it!”

“Guys,” John gasped. “I can’t breathe. Still getting used to these lungs.”

Hercules unceremoniously dropped them and Lafayette reluctantly let go. Neither noticed Aaron slipping out of the shop quietly.

Lafayette tugged John down into a chair. “Are you okay?” he asked, concerned. “Nothing wrong happened during the transformation, right?”

“I’m still a bit of a merperson,” John said. “But other than that, I’m good.” He grinned. “I’m staying here forever.” 

“We need a party,” Hercules decided, reaching over to ruffle John’s hair. “Laf can bake a cake. I can take care of decorations.”

“Sure,” John said, completely confused as to what a ‘cake’ was.

“We can invite the nereids!” Lafayette said excitedly. “And Maria! She can promise not to seduce and eat anyone. And we could also—”

“Where’s Alex?” John interrupted them. “I haven’t seen him all day. Is he okay?”

“I completely forgot,” Hercules said. “He’s been waiting on the beach almost all day for you.”

John nearly choked. “All day? He must be waiting by the rocks. I need to go there now!”

“I don’t know why we had any doubts about them,” Hercules said to Lafayette. “They’re obviously perfect for each other.”

Lafayette nodded in agreement, pushing at John lightly with his hand. “Go get your man!” he said with a grin. As John ran out the door, Lafayette turned to Hercules.

“They’ll be okay, right?” he asked.

Hercules looked over to where John was running to the ocean. “Don't worry about it,” he said. “They’ll be more than okay.”

* * *

The sun was setting over the ocean, bathing the sea and sky in a golden glow. It was pretty, Alex thought, despite how much more he preferred sunrises. 

“Hey.”

Alex didn’t turn around. “Please tell me this is John,” he said, keeping his eyes glued on the horizon. “because I don’t know what I’d do with myself if it isn’t.”

There was a laugh, as warm as sunlight, and a hand on his shoulder. “It’s me, Alex.” 

Alex turned and was met with a pair of green eyes and John was standing next to him with a slight smile. “You’re an idiot for standing there,” he said. “I washed up over there.” He jutted his thumb further down the beach. “You completely missed me.” 

“I feel hurt,” Alex said, grinning, already bouncing back into their usual banter. John offered his hand and he took it, letting John lead him away from the rocks.

“You feel hurt,” John repeated, raising his eyebrows and tilting his head.

“Betrayed by the one I love most,” Alex said dramatically.

John's smile widened. “So you love me now?” he teased, taking a step closer to Alex.

Alex wrapped a hand around the back of John’s neck. “Oh my god, shut up,” he said, pulling him closer. "You're officially my least favorite person."

John laughed. His gaze was warm and his smile soft and he murmured, "I love you too, idiot," and kissed him.

John tasted of fresh rain and sea breezes and something else beautiful and poetic that Alex was for sure going to write down later in a love letter, but for now, it was them and last rays of the sun washing over them, and John’s hand was in his, and he wouldn’t give this away for anything.

* * *

They talked until the stars appeared in the sky. They talked of what they would do tomorrow, where they’d be in the future, what they could do, just the two of them.

( _“We could unite land and sea. We could rebel against the king. We could rewrite our entire history.”_

_“You could take the whole world, if you wanted.”_

_“Only if you’re by my side, John, could I do any of that._ ”)

“I feel like this is the perfect end of something,” John said to Alex, grinning.

“Oh, my dear John,” Alex said softly, his smile lighting up the night. “This is just the beginning.”

They ended up on the sand, in a tangle of limbs, laughing and talking and kissing, grains of sand in their hair and salt water on their skin, staring up at the stars and listening to the waves.

“We need a new constellation now,” Alex said, scanning the night sky. “How about…” He picked up John’s hand, lacing their fingers together and pointing to a pattern of stars. “That one?”

John tilted his head, staring up at the faintly glowing star,s their hands silhouetted against the dark blanket of night, and smiled softly, squeezing their hands together once. “I think that works just fine.”

**Notes for the Chapter:**

> Thank you for everyone who stuck through with this and commented/left kudos!! Really appreciate it <3333
> 
> I'm thinking of MAYBE doing another multi-chap fic (lams superhero au???) but I'd only start that in the summer. In the meantime, I'm focusing on my We'll Figure it Out series ~~and also probably a dear evan hansen fic~~
> 
> In the meantime you can request fics on my tumblr (for something random or something from any of my verses). I have some prompts on [this tag on my tumblr](http://starlitdreamscapes.tumblr.com/tagged/ask%20starlit).
> 
>   [Check out these](http://starlitdreamscapes.tumblr.com/post/155205908454/liberteaowo-im-a-huge-fan-of-the-ever-classic)  [amazing pieces](http://starlitdreamscapes.tumblr.com/post/153004102289/xrippuino-lams-doodles-20-mermaid-au-by) [of fanart](http://starlitdreamscapes.tumblr.com/post/155573517739/throughtheriver23-i-can-have-the-entire-ocean)
> 
> [Oh and there's also this fic I forgot to link last chapter.](http://archiveofourown.org/works/10556514)

**Author's Note:**

> If you have any questions hit me up at my [tumblr](http://starlitdreamscapes.tumblr.com) (or just follow me) and please leave a comment or kudos if you like it so far! I've been waiting since July to write this mess of an AU.


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